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.
So too, a wife may be more attracted by a potential spouse who shares her interests, rather than one offering only to bring home the bacon.
From New York Times ● Nov. 23, 2021
“And that is a big difference in making sure that we can bring home the bacon to the people who are counting on us.”
From Washington Post ● Aug. 3, 2021
Who says England couldn’t bring home the bacon in the World Cup?
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 13, 2018
After all, where’s the fun of being in Congress if you can’t bring home the bacon?
From Washington Times ● Jan. 24, 2018
“When the parson and I go out, we bring home the bacon, every time.”
From The Heart of Canyon Pass by Holmes, Thomas K.
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.
