Question

in_the_loop_156 to criticize in such a way that one appears to be praising when in fact one is condemning or disapproving Compare to: backhanded compliment

Accepted Answer

DAMN (SOMEONE) WITH FAINT PRAISE Jeff told me that the diet I was trying was showing results, and he asked how much more weight I had to lose. He was really telling me that I’m still too fat. He was damning me with faint praise.Alicia told me that she was never able to make her old shoes last more than a few years the way I could. She was really trying to point out that my shoes were old and that hers are not. She damned me with faint praise. In this idiom the word ‘faint’ means weak or feeble.

Id	in_the_loop_156
Idiom	DAMN (SOMEONE) WITH FAINT PRAISE
Definition	to criticize in such a way that one appears to be praising when in fact one is condemning or disapproving
Examples	Jeff told me that the diet I was trying was showing results, and he asked how much more weight I had to lose. He was really telling me that I’m still too fat. He was damning me with faint praise. Alicia told me that she was never able to make her old shoes last more than a few years the way I could. She was really trying to point out that my shoes were old and that hers are not. She damned me with faint praise.
Cross-Refs	Compare to: backhanded compliment
Extra Info	In this idiom the word ‘faint’ means weak or feeble.

Faint Praise I Told Shoes Loop Damn Criticize