wolf in sheep's clothing
Hidden dangerous pretender
A wolf in sheep's clothing is someone who appears harmless or friendly but is actually dangerous or deceitful.
The phrase comes from a biblical warning about false prophets who disguise their predatory intentions behind innocent appearances: He seemed like a generous donor, but he turned out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
- duplicityDeliberate misleading behavior
- hypocrisyPretense of virtue
- insincerityLack of genuine feeling
- false pretensesDeceptive claims for gain
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
hidden agenda · betrayal · pretense · deceptive appearance · Trojan horse · dishonesty · guile · treachery · fraudster · Judas · camouflage · Aesop · charlatan · Little Red Riding Hood · snake in the grass · cunning · false friend · exploitation
- clothing idiomsfit like a glove, dressed to the nines, dressed to kill, wear the pants, caught with pants down
- Biblical imageryLamb of God, Good Shepherd, bread of life, light of the world, living water
- AllusionsAchilles heel, Pandora's box, Trojan horse, forbidden fruit, Midas touch
- animal fablesfable, fables, beast fables, beast fable, animal fable
- Animal Idiomsblind as a bat, brave as a lion, busy bee, copycat, dark horse
- deceiversliar, liars, deceiver, fraud, fake
wolf in sheep's clothingwhat you see is what you get
No deception or concealment
honest broker · straight shooter · open book · transparent · guileless
wolf in sheep's clothingdiamond in the rough
Unrefined person with potential
rough diamond · sheep in wolf's clothing · guardian angel · anonymous donor · unsung hero
wolf in sheep's clothingfaithful friend
Reliable, constant companion
true blue · steadfast · reliable · dependable · man of his word
sheep, clothing, sheepish, wolves, wolfish, shepherds, sheepishly, wolfhound, wolfishly