cain
First biblical murderer
Cain is an archaic or dialectal word meaning to raise a commotion or cause trouble, surviving mainly in the expression raise Cain—to create an uproar or behave disruptively: The kids raised Cain while their parents were out.
The phrase alludes to the biblical figure. (Capitalized Cain is the biblical firstborn of Adam and Eve.)
idiom
Lift or increase
- commotionNoisy, confused disturbance
- troubleDifficulty or distress
- uproarNoisy public disturbance
- ruckusNoisy, disruptive commotion
disruptive · havoc · disturbance · rowdy · unruly
raise
Lift or increase
ruckus · disruptive · havoc · disturbance · rowdy · unruly
- raised CainMade a commotion
- raising CainBehaving wildly disruptive
- raise CainCreate wild commotion
- Cain and AbelAdam's sons, first brothers
- mark of CainSymbol of guilt