to handle with kid gloves
1
7.0
- idiom
- Informal
:
manejar con guantes de seda
- Claims that he was dead set against the bombing... ... that you were unstable and that he has to handle you with kid gloves.
Examples
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When addressing her concerns, the manager chose to handle with kid gloves to avoid upsetting her.
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I would much rather have a JJ Abrams, Josh Whedon, or even John Favreau; these guys would handle it with kid gloves.
Blog text (20) -
"Claims he has to handle you with kid gloves..."
Fiction book (1995) -
Mark my words, the coroner will handle them with kid gloves.
Fiction book (1993) -
There is a difference between treating people with respect and handling them with kid gloves.
Blog text (16) -
He's a powerful guy, you better handle it with kid gloves.
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I'll handle her with kid gloves if it'll make you happy.
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What most maddens me—and this is just the way the NBA works nowadays—is that EG acts petulant, and as a response, the organization handles him with kid gloves.
Blog text (18) -
The coach decided to handle with kid gloves the young player to boost his confidence.
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Teachers often handle with kid gloves students who are struggling to maintain their self-esteem.
Synonyms
4
3.5
To treat someone or something gently to avoid harm
Antonyms
How Carefully
- Informal
1
7.0
4
3.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
There is a surface connection—'handle' + 'gloves' suggests protective or careful treatment—but the idiomatic meaning depends on knowing that 'kid' denotes soft goat leather and that 'kid gloves' imply delicate handling. This cultural/lexical knowledge and metaphorical extension mean the sense is partly inferable but not fully predictable for a B1 learner, so it is best classed as semi-transparent.
Etymology
Handle with kid gloves may come from using very soft gloves made from the skin of a young goat called 'kid' to touch fragile things. The image of someone who handles something with soft kid gloves shows why the phrase means 'to treat someone or something very carefully and gently'.