Word.ws English Dictionary

Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

Caesar's wife must be above suspicion proverb: those in positions of authority should avoid even the implication of impropriety.

Proverb

Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

  1. Those in positions of authority should avoid even the implication of impropriety.

Forms of Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

alternative formCaesar's wife must be above reproach
alternative formCaesar's wife should be above suspicion
alternative formCaesar's wife should be above reproach

Origin of Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

In 62 BC Publius Clodius Pulcher sneaked into the festival of the Bona Dea, hosted by Julius Caesar’s wife, Pompeia, with the intention of seducing her, leading to Publius’s arrest and trial. After the trial, Caesar divorced Pompeia, and when questioned said “my wife ought not even to be under suspicion,” as Pompeia was under suspicion of illicit behavior.

Questions about Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

What does Caesar's wife must be above suspicion mean?
Caesar's wife must be above suspicion means those in positions of authority should avoid even the implication of impropriety.
What part of speech is Caesar's wife must be above suspicion?
Caesar's wife must be above suspicion is a proverb.

Words near Caesar's wife must be above suspicion in the dictionary

  1. Caesar's agarics
  2. Caesar's mushroom
  3. Caesar's mushrooms
  4. Caesar's Palace
  5. Caesar's wife
  6. Caesar's wife must be above suspicion
  7. Caesar's wives
  8. Caesaraugusta
  9. Caesardom
  10. Caesarea
  11. Caesarea Maritima

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: Caesar's wife must be above suspicion (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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