What it means
Means someone’s green, clueless, and still learning the ropes. It’s often said about a newbie at work or a young person trying to act like they’ve seen it all. The image is of a newborn animal still damp from birth, so yeah, not exactly seasoned. Can be teasing, but it can also be a proper put-down.
Usage examples
"First day on the site and he’s already calling the boss mate. Bless him, he’s wet behind the ears, but he’ll get there."
"The new intern is wet behind the ears, asked me how to print on letterhead paper and where the postman picks up the office mail, but he turned up an hour early and brought his own pens."
"I was wet behind the ears my first summer at the chippie, dropped the basket twice on shift one, the boss laughed and said come back tomorrow, just do not touch the vinegar bottle again."
"You can tell he's still wet behind the ears, turned up to the pub quiz with three highlighters and a spreadsheet."
"She's a bit wet behind the ears in court, yeah, but give her six months and she'll stop apologising to the printer."
Where it comes from
This one goes back to old rural English. A newborn calf or lamb could still be literally damp behind the ears right after birth, so the phrase started as a vivid way to say someone was brand new to the world. By the 1800s, English speakers were already using it for inexperienced people.
