# the mark of Cain

idiom · CEFR C1

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/the-mark-of-cain
Updated: 2026-07-29

## Meaning

A visible stigma that marks someone out as guilty or disgraced.

## Examples

- After the scandal, he felt he carried the mark of Cain wherever he went.
- A criminal record can be a mark of Cain, following people into every job interview for years.
- The whistleblower was vindicated in court, yet the mark of Cain lingered in the industry, where nobody wanted to hire someone known for talking.

## Origin

After Cain murders his brother Abel, God condemns him to wander the earth. Cain protests that anyone who finds him will kill him, and in Genesis 4:15 God places a mark on him — not as a brand of shame, but as protection, a warning that whoever kills Cain will suffer sevenfold vengeance. The original text is careful and a little mysterious: it never says what the mark looked like, and it functions as a safeguard rather than a punishment. Centuries of retelling reversed the emphasis, turning a mark of divine protection into a mark of guilt. That later reading is the one English kept. The mark of Cain now means a visible stigma of wrongdoing — a sign, real or figurative, that brands someone as a criminal or an outcast.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.