English

Adjective

born in a barn ‎(not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) Lacking a sense of etiquette; ill-mannered.
   • 1971, Joyce Carol Oates, Wonderland: A Novel, Vanguard Press, p. 76:

     His aunt said angrily: "Fritz, were you born in a barn? Don't you have any manners?"

   • 2002 June 19, Ruth Ann Baker, "Even wolves behave in the pack," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, p. N4 (retrieved 15 Sep 2008):

     Phone at a symphony concert? I'd ask if these people were born in a barn, but that would disrespect the animals.

2. Of humble birth, especially when referring to Jesus Christ.
   • 2007 July 6, "A Catholic vision for farm and town," National Catholic Reporter (retrieved 15 Sep 2008):

     No surprise really for followers of Jesus, who after all was a rural dweller himself, born in a barn.

3. (idiomatic) Engaging in the annoying behavior of inappropriately, and usually neglectfully, leaving open a door or window.
   • 2006 Oct. 20, Heather Murphy, "The More the Merrier?," Washington Post (retrieved 15 Sep 2008):

     Neither bothered to lock or shut the house's front or back doors. "It was like they had been born in a barn," she says.

Usage notes

• Often used in a rhetorical question directed toward a person who is rude, or who displays ignorance and stupidity: Were you born in a barn?

Synonyms

• (lacking etiquette): raised by wolves, raised in a barn