skeleton in one's house

skeleton in one's house (plural skeletons in one's house)

1. Alternative form of skeleton in the house.
   • 1854 December 2, “May and December: a Tale of Wedded Life. By Mrs. [Catherine] Hubback. […]”, in The Athenæum: Journal of English and Foreign Literature, Science, and the Fine Arts, number 1414, London: […] James Holmes, […] J. Francis, →ISSN, →OCLC, “New Novels” section, page 1459, column 1:

     Her cousin and her rash promise to him are the skeletons in her house: he tyrannizes over her, and she is obliged to consent to much evil, for the cousin has embarked in railway speculations, and involved the house, of which he is the manager, in very hazardous operations, and run himself personally into debt, and he claims May’s interest to shield and uphold him and to get him taken into partnership.

   • 1863 October 3, John Shaw Billings, diary; quoted in Fielding H[udson] Garrison, “Experiences of a Medical Officer during the Civil War”, in John Shaw Billings: A Memoir, New York, N.Y.; London: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, The Knickerbocker Press, 1915, →OCLC, page 70:

     Every man seems to have a skeleton in his house of some kind or other, and we find it out to a certainty if any exists.

   • 1922 July, Heinrich Kanner, translated by Harriet Betty Boas, “Germany Self-Convicted”, in Current History: A Monthly Magazine of The New York Times, volume XVI, number 4, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →OCLC, section V (End of the War Lies), page 679, column 2:

     Why did not the German and Austrian Governments, similarly to the English, French, Russian, Belgian, Italian and Serbian Governments, immediately after the outbreak of the war, publish their official documents relating to the war’s preliminary history in a collection of some completeness? Because they knew of the skeleton in their house, their own secret documents; […]