sacred cow

American  

noun

1. an individual, organization, institution, etc., considered to be exempt from criticism or questioning.

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sacred cow British  

noun

1. informal a person, institution, custom, etc, unreasonably held to be beyond criticism

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sacred cow Cultural  

1. Figuratively, anything that is beyond criticism: “That housing project is a real sacred cow: the city council won't hear of abandoning it.” In India, followers of Hinduism consider cows sacred and do not eat them because they believe the animals contain the souls of dead persons.

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sacred cow Idioms  

1. A person or thing immune to criticism or questioning, as in The rules governing the press conference have become a sacred cow in this administration. This term alludes to the honored status of cows in Hinduism, where they are a symbol of God's generosity to humankind. It has been used figuratively since about 1900.

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Etymology

Origin of sacred cow

First recorded in 1905–10; in reference to the traditional inviolability of the cow among Hindus

Example Sentences

The conservative advocate who dismantled affirmative action is joining forces with a center-left Democrat and a Duke University economist to challenge another sacred cow in elite college admissions: preferential treatment for the offspring of alumni.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025

Has Fraser met a sacred cow she wouldn’t skewer?

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2025

To them, it looked like Worcester had hitched his cart to a sacred cow - the nation’s veterans.

From Washington Times • Jun. 30, 2023

To them, it looked like Worcester had hitched his cart to a sacred cow — the nation’s veterans.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 29, 2023

I didn’t know what sacred cow I had bumped, but it was better to find out than to hang like a thread over an open fire.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou