tarred with the same brush



tarred with the same brush

Fig. sharing the same characteristic(s); having the same good or bad points as someone else. Jack and his brother are tarred with the same brush. They're both crooks. The Smith children are tarred with the same brush. They're all lazy.
See also: brush, same, tar

tarred with the same brush

Having the same faults or bad qualities, as in He may be lazy, but if you ask me his friends are all tarred with the same brush. This term is thought to come from sheep farming, where the animals' sores were treated by brushing tar over them, and all the sheep in a flock were treated in the same way. The term was transferred to likeness in human beings in the early 1800s.
See also: brush, same, tar

tarred with the same brush

Considered or described as having the same faults or bad qualities.
See also: brush, same, tar

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
EseAY-səFrisian
Haf-Welsh
LudgerLUD-gər (Dutch)German, Dutch
Cowal-Irish
Oluwatoyin-Western African, Yoruba
Aigle-Greek Mythology