He flays enough who holds the foot.
He flays enough who holds the foot.
Meaning in plain English
Helping another person carry out an action can make you part of its consequences. The supporting role in the image matters even though it does not perform the whole act.
Example
A staff member refuses to supply private messages for a colleague’s attempt to publicly humiliate someone.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
Holding the foot assists the flaying described in the proverb. The image gives an apparently secondary action a place in the main undertaking. A critical application asks whether help enables something unfair or harmful rather than looking only at who performs the most visible step. It does not establish a legal rule of responsibility, and participation, knowledge and freedom to refuse can differ. The useful question is what the support makes possible in this particular situation.
When to use it
Use it critically to examine what a supporting action enables.
Keep in mind
The saying is not a legal finding; consider knowledge, coercion and the actual effect of the assistance.
Edsverb editorial interpretation · agent reviewed · 2026-10-05. This explains the saying; it does not establish its historical origin.
- Source
- A Polyglot of Foreign Proverbs (1857)
Printed page 5; French section, paragraph 101; source wording: Assez écorche qui le pied tient.
Read the original context ↗ - Attribution confidence
- traditional · historical anthology
Preserved as printed; independently unverified. - Historical coordinate
- Undated
No reliable date supplied by the collection. - Rights & edition
- Public domain (United States)
Translations and rights may differ elsewhere.
Provenance and licences ↗