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Glite Dictionary
where the bodies are buried

where the bodies are buried

3 9.9
To know secret unpleasant details about a group or company
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : saber dónde están los secretos
  • After doing research, I found out that he knows where the bodies are buried regarding the mysterious disappearance of funds.
  • know where the bodies are buried

Examples

  • All you have to do is tell us where the bodies are buried.

    Jurassic City (2015)

  • I can show you where the bodies are buried.

    Frailty (2002)

  • They also know "where the bodies are buried" and how to use this to their advantage.

    Academic text (2012)

  • Chicago is home to the biggest cookie factory in the world, but I won't tell you where the bodies are buried no matter what you do to me.

  • He has been close enough to know where the bodies are buried, but has avoided personal burial in the stultifying conventional ideas dominating Indian affairs.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • He has been in this town for years and knows exactly where the bodies are buried when it comes to the local politics.

  • As the former manager, she knows where the bodies are buried in the company's history, including its biggest scandals.

Synonyms

to know where the bodies are buried
vswhere the bodies are buried
  • Informal
3 9.9

To have secret information about hidden bad things in a group

is the same knowledge but does not state how it was learned

How Knowledgeable

where the bodies are buried
  • Informal
3 9.9
in the know
  • Informal
20 8.1
to know the score
  • Informal
11 4.9
to know what's what
  • Informal
15 6.7
unaware
175 2.9

Surface Forms

where the bodies are buried main

Morphology

where + the + body + be + bury

Although the literal words describe an actual location where corpses are interred (with 'bury' meaning to hide/cover), the idiomatic sense — knowing hidden, often unpleasant secrets about an organization or person — is a metaphorical/pragmatic extension that is not directly derivable from the constituents. A B1 learner who knows the individual words would be unlikely to infer this figurative meaning without prior exposure or cultural knowledge, so the expression is idiomatic and unpredictable.

Etymology

Where the bodies are buried may come from the strong image of someone who knows exactly where real bodies are buried on a piece of land, so they hold hidden and shocking facts. That's why the phrase now means 'to know the secret, often unpleasant, details' about a person, company, or situation.