The idiom, blue eyed boy or blue eyed girl, refers to a someone who is liked, admired and often favoured by someone in authority. It is an expression more often used in Britain and Australia than in American English, and is often used with a derogatory or envious tone of voice and/or feelings of resent.
Blue Eyed Boy & Blue Eyed Girl Example Sentences:
- Yes, Jack certainly is the blue eyed boy in this department! When it comes to promotion, Jack is always the first to be considered! The rest of us don’t even get a look in!
- What do you mean, Becky, “I’m not the blue eyed girl“? Who doesn’t get into trouble for being late? Becky! Who is allowed to wear jeans to work despite the ‘no jeans’ policy! Becky! And who is allowed to lose a contract without getting fired? Becky! Of course you are the blue eyed girl!
They don’t actually need to have blue eyes to be considered a blue eyed boy of girl and they can be found in every walk of life. Whether in the classroom, the workplace, the local club or just in the local neighbourhood, blue eyed boys and girls are ubiquitous – as is the jealousy and resent from friends, family and coworkers that often surrounds them.
More ‘Real’ Examples From Around The Web
- PETER CUMMINGS, the one-time blue-eyed boy who signed Bank of Scotland cheques for some of Britain’s leading entrepreneurs, is now taking the blame for much of what went wrong. Read more
- When he first launched his label back in 1997, little did everyone realise that fifteen years into the business Rajesh Pratap Singh would be the blue-eyed boy who will change the face of Indian ready-to-wear. Read more
Blue Eyed Boy – Synonyms
- fair-haired boy (more often used in American English instead of blue eyed boy).
- teacher’s pet (more likely to be used in a classroom situation).
- golden boy (amongst my brothers, I have always been referred to as ‘Golden Boy’).
Blue Eyed Boy – You Tube Video
This is 5th song from the album Kokopelli by Kosheen
Blue Eyed Boy (by Kosheen) – Lyrics
Have you ever known a blue eyed boy or a blue eyed girl, or perhaps you are one yourself? Please leave a comment below and tell us about your experiences.
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My family and I are Mexican, so obviously we’re of mixed blood, mongrels if you like; among my wife’s ancestors as among mine, there were several with marked European ancestry and a few with true blue eyes, in addition to many with green or tan eyes. Now among my eight grandchildren there’s one with bright blond hair, extremely fair skin and blue eyes, looks Nordic. We don’t give much importance to that and are more preoccupied about skin cancer. I have an extremely poor in melanine skin and I’m constantly threatened by skin cancer (actinic kerathosis). It should be considered a bane, not a blessing.
That’s interesting to note, Jorge – thanks for sharing.
Famous American elementary school experiment filmed in 1968: teacher divided her class into those with blue eyes and those with brown and told the blue eyed group they were ‘better’. Behaviours changed and the blue eyed group started behaving in a superior manner. Next day the teacher reversed the rules and later the talked to the children about what was fair, and not, about how we should treat others, based on perceived or actual differences. Timing of experiment was immediately after assassination of Martin Luther King, which maybe explains, together with the fact it was captured on film, why it received so much attention.
I’ve wondered if the expression ‘blue eyed boy’ pre-dates this experiment or not; if it could perhaps be the origin.