lay a finger on
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Harm someone.
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
Don't you dare so much as lay a finger on me.
' Other women may have enjoyed your Viking tactics but, let me assure you, if you lay one finger on me you'll regret it. '
British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Figurative class: Metaphor (PIE-English corpus, CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31).
Common questions
What does “lay a finger on” mean?
Harm someone.
Is “lay a finger on” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.