English in a Minute: Bite the Hand That Feeds You

Welcome to English in a Minute! 

We sometimes eat with our hands. But why would you bite the hand that feeds you?  

A: Boy, Olivia is about to do something really stupid at the community meeting tonight.  
D: Uh oh. Olivia…what is she going to do now?  
A: She plans to speak out against that new housing development. 
D: But Olivia works for the company that’s building it. 
A: Exactly. She is biting the hand that feeds her.  

If you “bite the hand that feeds you,” you criticize or hurt someone you depend on. We often use this expression to describe a situation where someone is doing something that works against their own interests.   And that’s English in a Minute.