Like a barber's chair, fit for every buttock.
Like a barber's chair, fit for every buttock.
Meaning in plain English
Someone endlessly available to everyone may lack a position or allegiance of their own. The chair image mocks indiscriminate accommodation, although openness and helpfulness can also be strengths.
Example
A committee member promises support to two incompatible proposals rather than explaining their own view.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
A barber’s chair receives one customer after another without caring who sits in it. Applied to a person, the comparison suggests readiness to accommodate every side, perhaps even when their demands conflict. It can criticise opportunism or a refusal to take responsibility for a judgment. The insult should not erase the value of a welcoming service or someone willing to hear different opinions. The relevant question is whether accommodation remains honest and principled. A person can treat everyone courteously while making clear what they believe, what they can offer and where their boundaries lie.
When to use it
Use it to question accommodation that avoids an honest position.
Keep in mind
Welcoming different people is not itself evidence of opportunism.
Edsverb editorial interpretation · agent reviewed · 2026-10-04. This explains the saying; it does not establish its historical origin.
- Source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 63 · Barber's chair
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 ↗