walk in someone else's moccasins

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

to understand another person's experience by imaginatively placing oneself in their situation, seeing the world through their eyes and feeling what they feel, before passing judgement on their choices or circumstances; the phrase is derived from a Native American proverb, with various versions attributed to Cherokee, Cheyenne, Sioux, and other traditions, and is one of the most widely recognised indigenous cultural phrases in the Anglo-American context; it expresses the principle of empathy as a prerequisite for justice and understanding, insisting that true knowledge of another person's situation requires imaginative identification with their experience rather than judgement from the outside; the specific image of the moccasin — a shoe shaped to the foot of its wearer, inseparable from the body and journey of the person who wore it — captures the intimacy and specificity of the perspective-taking required