bring home the bacon
Idioms-
Earn a living, provide the necessities of life, as in Now that she had a job, Patricia could bring home the bacon .
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Be successful, accomplish something of value, as in George went to Washington and brought home the bacon—he got the funding we needed . Although the earliest citation for this phrase in the Oxford English Dictionary dates from 1924, the term is widely believed to come from the much older game of catching a greased pig, a popular competition at country fairs in which the winner was awarded the pig.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bring home the bacon in this week’s Slate News Quiz.
From Slate • Aug. 11, 2023
In American politics the following truisms still apply: "All politics is local"; "A chicken in every pot"; "What have you done for me lately?"; and "Bring home the bacon."
From Salon • May 16, 2019
"Bring home the bacon," shouted John J. McCloy, the new American High Commissioner in Germany.
From Time Magazine Archive
Bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, split the second shift with some sensitive New Age man.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
