smell a rat

1. To sense foul play: “They claim they will honor the terms of the contract, but I smell a rat.”

Idioms and Phrases

Suspect something is wrong, especially a betrayal of some kind. For example, When I didn't hear any more from my prospective employer, I began to smell a rat. This expression alludes to a cat sniffing out a rat. [c. 1550]

Related Words

• assume 
• believe 
• consider 
• doubt 
• presume 
• speculate 
• think 
• wonder