Sweep something under the rug Informal

Conceal or deliberately ignore a problem, mistake or wrongdoing instead of addressing it openly. The hidden issue remains unresolved.

The idiom comes from an ordinary household image: rather than collecting and removing dirt, someone sweeps it beneath a rug so that the room looks clean at first glance. The appearance of order is achieved without actually solving the problem. English uses both «under the rug» and «under the carpet», with regional and stylistic preferences varying. The figurative expression became particularly apt for institutions, families and organizations that prefer to protect their reputation by hiding inconvenient facts. The metaphor emphasizes concealment and postponement, not necessarily the destruction of evidence. It also carries an implicit warning: dirt hidden under a rug is still there and may be discovered later. There is no need to claim that a particular scandal or named writer invented the phrase; its power comes from the easily understood domestic scene.

The board tried to sweep the complaints under the rug.

We can’t just sweep this accounting error under the rug.

They swept the problem under the rug until it became a crisis.