In Russian, someone with an uneasy conscience is described by an idiom that translates as “The thief has a burning hat”–perhaps because he’s suffering discomfort that no one else perceives. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Thief with a Burning Hat”
There’s a great Russian idiom that is about somebody with an uneasy conscience.
I think it’s really picturesque.
The thief has a burning hat.
Ooh, isn’t that great?
Yeah, they’ve got the hat on the head.
They think that they’re fooling everybody, but their hat’s on fire.
Well, isn’t it kind of the inverse of that, though?
That they feel like their hat’s on fire, even others can’t tell.
That’s what an uneasy conscience is about.
Oh, it’s burning inside the crown.
You know when you’ve got new shoes and they’re really killing your feet and you feel like it’s evident?
But you’re the only one who knows.
Maybe that’s it.
That’s really deep.
Maybe we can make a new idiom out of that.
Yeah?
When you have a burning secret, it’s like, his shoes are too tight.
Oh, I like that.
I like that.
Maybe this is how idioms get started.
This is a show about language and how we use it.
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I came here from a google search after a conversation with a russian friend. Actually, the way he explained the expression is that it comes from an old story or something where a crime is committed and the detective (or whoever) says “The thief’s hat is on fire.” At hearing this, the actual thief reaches up to the top of his head to check it, revealing who he is.