| 释义 |
on the wagon
wag·on W0006300 (wăg′ən)n.1. A four-wheeled, usually horse-drawn vehicle with a large rectangular body, used for transporting loads.2. a. A light automotive transport or delivery vehicle.b. A station wagon.c. A police patrol wagon.3. A child's low, four-wheeled cart hauled by a long handle that governs the direction of the front wheels.4. A small table or tray on wheels used for serving drinks or food: a dessert wagon.5. Wagon The Big Dipper6. Chiefly British An open railway freight car.tr. & intr.v. wag·oned, wag·on·ing, wag·ons To transport or undergo transportation by wagon.Idioms: off the wagon Slang 1. No longer abstaining from alcoholic beverages.2. No longer persevering with some other program requiring self-discipline, such as losing weight or quitting smoking. on the wagon Slang 1. Abstaining from alcoholic beverages.2. Persevering with some other program requiring self-discipline, such as losing weight or quitting smoking.
[Middle English waggin, from Middle Dutch wagen; see wegh- in Indo-European roots.]on the wagon - Before paved roads, horse-drawn water wagons sprayed the streets to settle the dust, and anyone who had sworn abstinence from alcohol was said to have "climbed aboard the water wagon," later shortened to "on the wagon."See also related terms for streets.on the wagon
on the wagonMaintaining one's sobriety; abstaining from alcohol or drugs. The common phrase "off the wagon" is used to indicate the opposite. I'm much healthier now that I'm on the wagon, but I find it hard to socialize with my friends. Thinking about my daughter's future helps keep me on the wagon.See also: on, wagonon the wagonFig. not drinking alcohol. No, I don't care for a cocktail. I'm on the wagon. Bob's old drinking buddies complained that he was no fun when he went on the wagon.See also: on, wagonon the wagonAbstaining from drinking alcoholic beverages, as in Don't offer her wine; she's on the wagon. This expression is a shortening of on the water wagon, referring to the horse-drawn water car once used to spray dirt roads to keep down the dust. Its present meaning dates from about 1900. The antonym off the wagon, used for a resumption of drinking, dates from the same period. B.J. Taylor used it in Extra Dry (1906): "It is better to have been on and off the wagon than never to have been on at all." See also: on, wagonon the wagon If someone is on the wagon, they have stopped drinking alcohol. I'm on the wagon for a while. Cleaning out my system. Note: You can say that someone falls off the wagon when they start to drink alcohol again after a period of not drinking it. Sadly, he fell off the wagon after 12 dry years. Note: Originally the expression was `on the water wagon' or `water cart'. Water carts were horse-drawn carts used for transporting water or for sprinkling the streets. If someone was `on the wagon', they were drinking water and not alcohol. See also: on, wagonon the wagon teetotal. informal This expression originated in early 20th-century American use in the form on the water wagon , the implication being that a person on the water wagon would eschew alcohol in favour of water. 1989 Michael Norman These Good Men I'll just have a club soda with a twist of lime…I'm on the wagon. See also: on, wagonon the wagon mod. not now drinking alcoholic liquor. How long has John been on the wagon this time? See also: on, wagon on the wagon Slang Abstaining from alcoholic beverages.See also: on, wagonEncyclopediaSeewagonAcronymsSeeOTW |