Don't throw the baby out with the bath water

Posted by Victoria S Dennis on April 27, 2007

In Reply to: Don't throw the baby out with the bath water posted by Angela on April 27, 2007

: What does "don't throw the baby out with the bath water" mean?

It means "take care, when getting rid of outworn and unnecessary things, not to jettison something important along with them". It originates from a 15th-century German satire, and was used by Martin Luther. (Do not believe anybody who tells you that it derives from mediaeval bathing habits - i.e. that peasant families would all use the same bathwater till it was so filthy that the baby could go missing in it. This is an Internet myth.

• Don't throw the baby out with the bath water Smokey Stover 30/April/07