English · Proverb Attested

don't shoot the messenger

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

The bearer of bad news should not be held accountable for it.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Người mang tin xấu không nên bị trách móc vì tin đó

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Where it’s used: Used American English

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “don't shoot the messenger” mean?

The bearer of bad news should not be held accountable for it.

Is “don't shoot the messenger” formal or informal?

don't shoot the messenger is generally humorous.

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