call it a day

Idioms  

1. Stop a particular activity for the rest of the day, as in It's past five o'clock so let's call it a day. Similarly, call it a night means “to stop something for the rest of the night,” as in One more hand of bridge and then let's call it a night. The original phrase was call it half a day, first recorded in 1838, which referred to leaving one's place of employment before the work day was over. The first recorded use of call it a day was in 1919, and of call it a night in 1938. Also see call it quits.

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Example Sentences

"I don't think when I was 30 I thought I'd still be here 11 years later," she said, asked when she might call it a day.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

Investors used to be able to diversify by buying a single fund like the iShares Emerging Markets ETF and call it a day.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026

So you can understand, if not necessarily agree with, their reluctance to drop out and call it a day, in the hope that, just maybe, that proverbial bolt of lightning will strike.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

Djokovic isn’t ready to call it a day just yet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 1, 2026

Do we just lie down on the cracked, dried mud of the lake bed and call it a day?

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Related Words

• achieve
• break up
• cease
• close
• complete
• conclude
• culminate
• delay
• drop
• expire
• finish
• give up
• halt
• play out
• quit
• resolve
• settle
• stop
• terminate
• wind up