sacar el ascua con mano ajena

== Spanish == === Etymology === Literally, “to take out the embers with someone else's hand”. === Verb === sacar el ascua con mano ajena (first-person singular present saco el ascua con mano ajena, first-person singular preterite saqué el ascua con mano ajena, past participle sacado el ascua con mano ajena) (idiomatic) to get someone else to do one's dirty work Synonym: sacar el ascua con la mano del gato === Further reading === “sacar alguien el ascua con la mano del gato, o con mano ajena”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025