rob the cradle

1. Have a romantic or sexual relationship with someone much younger than oneself, as in The old editor was notorious for robbing the cradle, always trying to date some young reporter. [Colloquial; first half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

“Let’s not rob the cradle,” Miller’s mother told Moore.

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“I’d say, ‘You’re too old for her . . . let’s not rob the cradle,’ ” Brackett recalls telling Moore.

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“I’d say, ‘You’re too old for her … let’s not rob the cradle,’ ” Brackett recalls telling Moore.

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Does the College rob the Cradle?

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No man could stand there and defend the right to rob the cradle—none to defend the right to sell the babe from the breast of the agonized mother—none to defend the claim that lashes on a bare back are a legal tender for labor performed.

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