behind someone's back

Image acquired from Wikimedia Commons and used with permission. Image attribution: public domain.

Explanation:

A secret is something about you that you don't tell anyone. Sometimes, two or more people can share a secret, but the information is secret because they don't tell others. Some people keep secrets because they do selfish things which might get them in trouble with other people. The guy in the picture above has been keeping a secret from his wife. He has a secret girlfriend! However, he was also stupid enough to keep a photograph of his secret girlfriend in his house where his wife could find it.

Now, she has found the photo, and she won't give it back to him. She's screaming at him, and demanding to know who this woman is! It's now obvious that he has been cheating on his wife, and visiting other women behind her back. Soon they will get divorced, and the man will have to leave his house and move in with his sexy girlfriend!

When we do something behind someone's back, it means that we do it when he or she is not watching us. Sometimes, people do or say things behind someone's back because they don't want that person to get upset.

Example:

Gary: Hey John. So, where's your friend Larry? You guys always hang out together.

John: Not this time. Larry and I aren't friends anymore.

Gary: That's too bad. What happened?

John: Well, I found out that he was doing a lot of things behind my back.

Gary: Oh yeah? Like what?

John: Well, he stole my car and my girlfriend behind my back.. Then, he spoke to my boss at work behind my back, and he got me fired from my job. Then, I found out that he had a blog on the Internet, and he was writing about all the things he did to me behind my back.

Gary: Wow! That's terrible!

John: Yeah, I know! Then, I found out that his blog has 85,000 readers, and all of them were laughing at me behind my back.

Gary: I just don't understand it. Larry was your friend. Why would he do all of that behind your back?

John: I'm not sure, but maybe he's angry with me about something. Maybe it has something to do with the money I borrowed from him.

Gary: Oh yeah? How much did you borrow from him?

John: Only one million dollars. He lent the money to me about two years ago, but I never actually gave it back to him. I wonder if that's what he's angry about? Not getting his one million dollars back.

Gary: Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Yeah. Maybe that's why, "Mr. Einstein!"

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