teach your grandmother to suck eggs
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
To presume to give advice to someone far more experienced than you.
Literally: To teach one’s grandmother how to suck out an egg.
How to use it
✓ Use it when
Gently mocking unnecessary advice to an expert.
✗ Avoid it when
The image is opaque to many younger or non-British speakers.
Register: informalConnotation: wryEra: 18th century – present
Where it’s used:
Used
British & Irish English
• the image is opaque to many non-British speakers
Examples
Explaining knife skills to a chef? That’s teaching your grandmother to suck eggs.
Editorial example (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Equivalents & related
Common questions
What does “teach your grandmother to suck eggs” mean?
To presume to give advice to someone far more experienced than you. Literally: To teach one’s grandmother how to suck out an egg.
Is “teach your grandmother to suck eggs” formal or informal?
teach your grandmother to suck eggs is generally informal; connotation: wry.
What is the closest equivalent?
“múa rìu qua mắt thợ” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.