Putty in one’s hands 意為「任由某人擺佈；易受某人擺佈或影響」。這個慣用語可用作隱喻 (metaphor) 而寫成或說成 be putty in one’s hands，如 My brother is putty in my hands. (我弟弟易受我的影響)，或者用作明喻 (simile) 而寫成或說成 be/seem like putty in one’s hands，如 She seems like putty in his hands. (她似乎任由他擺佈)。
Putty in one’s hands 的隱喻用法首次出現在 1924 年，但它的使用量在 20 世紀末大幅增加。這個慣用語中的 putty 意為「油灰」，是白堊粉和亞麻籽油的混合物，最常用來密封窗玻璃。
例句：
- Cindy’s husband is putty in her hands. He never thinks for himself. (辛蒂的先生任由她擺佈。他從來不會自己拿主意)
- John is putty in his father’s hands. He always does exactly what his father says. (約翰任由他父親擺佈。他向來都是他父親說什麼，他就做什麼)
- We were rather in awe of him — we were like putty in his hands. (我們對他非常敬畏 － 我們任由他擺佈)