buckle down

British  

verb

1. informal (intr, adverb) to apply oneself with determination

   to buckle down to a job

---

buckle down Idioms  

1. Set to work, apply oneself with determination, as in All right, we'll buckle down now and study for exams. Originating about 1700 as buckle to, the expression gained currency with the football song “Buckle-Down, Winsocki” (from the Broadway musical comedy Best Foot Forward, 1941). [Mid-1800s]

---

Example Sentences

Investors and consumers need to buckle down and brace for a lot more volatility ahead—especially when it comes to oil prices.

From Barron's • Mar. 21, 2026

“We’re just zoning in on that, and just the battle within ourselves. Like man we’ve gotta buckle down right, and we’ve gotta get this stuff done.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 12, 2025

“Let’s buckle down together, let’s remove barriers for each other and let’s go get it, all right?” he said to applause.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 20, 2025

“Tonight, I felt like we had to buckle down and help one another, especially when Sharpe and Brogdon got it going in that overtime as well as before overtime,” Sexton said.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 2, 2023

Fern had just come out in Lockhart, and it was time to buckle down to the business of meeting bachelors.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly