# wet behind the ears

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/wet-behind-the-ears
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Inexperienced; just beginning; immature (especially in judgment).

## Examples

- He is still wet behind the ears at his new job.
- The manager hesitated to give the project to the intern because he was still wet behind the ears.
- You cannot expect the new pilot to handle a storm alone when she is still so wet behind the ears and only finished her training last week.
- Although the young recruit showed great promise, his colleagues viewed him as wet behind the ears due to his lack of experience in the field.

## Origin

The term first appeared in English c. 1850 in Pennsylvania, functioning as a calque of the German phrase *feucht hinter den Ohren*. The German *Ohren* provides the anatomical focus for a condition of general dampness. The imagery is drawn from the birth of livestock. A newborn animal is licked dry by its mother in all accessible areas, leaving the crevices behind the ears as the final traces of amniotic fluid. To be so described is to be identified as a creature recently arrived, possessing the dampness of the womb and the corresponding lack of worldly experience.

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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.