Phrase guide
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
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
noun
A person now charged with protecting what they formerly preyed upon.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively, idiomatic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: wolf guarding the sheep
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see poacher, turned, gamekeeper.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
The figurative sense is by self-evident metaphor from the literal sense. The thought of poachers turned gamekeepers goes back centuries; for example, William Tinsley said in his memoirs that "There is an old saying that the most expert poachers make the best gamekeepers. I do not think the saying is true as a rule [...]".
