off the wagon
No longer maintaining a program of self-improvement or abstinence from an undesirable…No longer maintaining a program of self-improvement or abstinence from an undesirable habit, especially drinking alcohol.
» Yanni fell off the wagon hard.
Meaning
1 senses(idiomatic)No longer maintaining a program of self-improvement or abstinence from an undesirable habit, especially drinking alcohol.
She kept up her diet for an entire month before falling off the wagon.
He is off the wagon again.
Examples
12 sentencesYanni fell off the wagon hard.
Tom literally fell off the wagon.
Yanni has fallen off the wagon hard.
Tom got drunk and literally fell off the wagon.
I'm off the wagon.
Origin
Originally off the water wagon or off the water cart, referring to carts used to hose downOriginally off the water wagon or off the water cart, referring to carts used to hose down dusty roads: see the 1901 quotation below. The suggestion is that a person who is “on the wagon” is drinking water rather than alcoholic beverages. The term may have been used by the early 20th-century temperance movement in the United States; for instance, William Hamilton Anderson (1874 – c. 1959), the superintendent of the New York Anti-Saloon League, is said to have made the following remark about Prohibition: “Be a good sport about it. No more falling off the water wagon. Uncle Sam will help you keep your pledge.”
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