pound sand
To engage in a simple, useless activity that anyone would reasonably know how to performTo engage in a simple, useless activity that anyone would reasonably know how to perform.
» I told him to go pound sand.
Meaning
3 senses(idiomatic, informal)To engage in a simple, useless activity that anyone would reasonably know how to perform.
(idiomatic, informal)To engage in a futile activity.
(derogatory, idiomatic, slang)To go away; get lost; go to hell; to waste one's own time (with some other meaningless task) rather than waste the speaker's time with something equally irritating or pointless.
All you do is complain. Why don't you go pound sand up your ass and stop bothering the line staff.
Examples
2 sentencesI told him to go pound sand.
It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up.
Origin
First use appears c. 1857 in a poem by the Scottish poet Alexander Smith. Used as an exampFirst use appears c. 1857 in a poem by the Scottish poet Alexander Smith. Used as an example both of an activity so simple that almost anyone could do it and of an activity so pointless that only a fool would do it.
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Forms
pounds sand, pounding sand, pounded sand, pounded sand| Base form | pound sand · to pound sand |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | pounds sand |
| Present participle | pounding sand |
| Past simple | pounded sand |
| Past participle | pounded sand |
irregular
Synonyms
10 synonymsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle