Phrase guide

crab mentality

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A phenomenon in which a person or a group of people attempt to hinder the progress or success of others, even if such success does not directly affect their own well-being.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: crab bucket syndrome

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From the metaphor in which a pot of crabs, one crab attempts to escape over the side, but is relentlessly pulled down by the others in the pot.

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Cantonese: 魚蛋論 /鱼蛋论 — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Chinese Mandarin: 螃蟹心態 /螃蟹心态 (pángxiè xīntài) — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Chinese Mandarin: 螃蟹精神 (pángxiè jīngshén) — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Chinese Mandarin: 螃蟹心理 (pángxiè xīnlǐ) — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Dutch: krabbenmentaliteit — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Finnish: keskinäinen kateus — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Finnish: raputeoria — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Hungarian: dögöljön meg a szomszéd tehene is — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Indonesian: mentalitas kepiting — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Malay: mentaliti ketam — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Polish: mentalność psa ogrodnika — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Serbo-Croatian: da komšiji crkne krava — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Spanish: cangrejismo — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Spanish: mentalidad de cangrejo — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Tagalog: isip-alimango — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Tagalog: isip talangka — if I can't have it neither can you
  • Tagalog: kaisipang talangka — if I can't have it neither can you