ENGLISH
REFERENCE

crab mentality

idiom
Meaning

A phenomenon in which a person or a group of people attempt to hinder the progress or success of others, even if such success does not directly affect their own well-being.


Origin

disputed origin

From the metaphor in which a pot of crabs, one crab attempts to escape over the side, but is relentlessly pulled down by the others in the pot.

Examples
SIMPLE

Don't show crab mentality by trying to stop your friend from succeeding.

CONTEXTUAL

The team failed to reach their goal because of the crab mentality among members who sabotaged each other's work.

COMPLEX

Instead of celebrating her promotion, her colleagues displayed a clear crab mentality, actively undermining her efforts to improve the department's performance.

Anchors to
Related idioms1entry
  1. 01

    elbow mentality

    An attitude characterized by self-interest and a willingness to prioritize personal benefit or ambition, often above the welfare of an organization or community; a willingness to elbow (verb) past others.

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