don't let the bedbugs bite
- idiom
- Baby Talk
:
que no te muerdan las chinches
- She kissed her daughter goodnight and whispered, "Don't let the bedbugs bite."
Examples
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Every night, Grandma would say, "Sleep tight, don't let the bedbugs bite."
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Goodnight! Don't let the bedbugs bite!
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As he left the room, he called out, "Don't let the bedbugs bite!" with a smile.
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Before you sleep, remember: don't let the bedbugs bite.
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As he left the room, he called out, "Don't let the bedbugs bite!" with a smile.
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Every night, Grandma would say, "Sleep tight, don't let the bedbugs bite."
-
She kissed her daughter goodnight and whispered, "Don't let the bedbugs bite."
Synonyms
14
3.4
To wish someone a good night's sleep
To wish someone a good night as a joke
How Friendly
- Informal
- Baby Talk
3
8.1
- Baby Talk
- Literature
1
8.4
77
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
don't + let + the + bedbug + bite
The phrase literally composes as 'do not allow the bedbugs to bite (you)', so a learner who knows don't, let, bedbug, and bite can derive the literal meaning. Although it is a conventionalized, playful goodnight valediction rather than a literal warning, the overall sense is directly inferable from the constituents for an average B1 learner.
Etymology
Don't let the bedbugs bite may come from a time when real bedbugs were common; parents would say it to children as a playful warning to avoid itchy bites while going to bed. So today it is a friendly way to wish someone 'good night' or a peaceful sleep.