Fits Like a Glove (Not)
We love to use unusual expressions and drop them in our communications for variety occasionally. One of these expressions that always raises eyebrows is "with kid gloves." See if you know what it really means.
What does "kid gloves" refer to in this sentence: She had a frustrating experience with us last time, so please treat her with kid gloves.
Gloves made from goat skin
Gloves worn by a child
Gloves used to care for a child
Options 2 and 3 both correct
The correct answer is . . . option one, gloves made from goat skin. 🐐 The “kid” in “kid gloves” is a young goat, not a young person. Here’s a short history. Kid leather is soft and smooth, and, in the 1800s, it became popular to use as a material for gloves for the handling of delicate objects, such as silverware, without leaving smudges. For this reason, it was the material used to make the white gloves worn by house servants. Eventually, kid gloves came to be associated with the aristocracy. In the 1880s, the phrase “with kid gloves” first entered the language to mean “to handle or treat something with special consideration or in a tactful manner,” and, in 1909, “kid-glove” entered what is now the Merriam-Webster dictionary as an adjective meaning “characterized by the fastidiousness, daintiness, or delicacy looked for in those who wear kid gloves.” Although it might be reasonable to hear “kid gloves” today and think of the kind of gloves used to care for a kid or the kind of gloves worn by kids, kid gloves are simply gloves made from kid leather.