apple of someone's eye
nounEtymology
PIE word *h₂ébōl From Middle English appel of the eie (“pupil of the eye; cornea; (figurative) something highly valued”), from Old English æppel on the ēagan, used in biblical texts (Deuteronomy 32:10, Psalm 17:8; Proverbs 7:2, Lamentations 2:18, and Zechariah 2:8; compare the quotations) to designate the pupil of the eye as something precious to be protected. The use of "apple" in English is apparently due to the pupil or cornea being thought of as a solid, globular object.
- inherited from æppel on the ēagan
Definitions
The object of somebody's affections
The object of somebody's affections; a person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers; a favorite, a loved one.
- Sara was never the same after losing her daughter, the apple of her eye.
- Kepe me as the apple of an eye, defende me vnder the ſhadowe of thy wynges.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for apple of someone's eye. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA