pay the piper
CulturalExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Now the time has come for Jake to pay the piper.
From Fox News • Aug. 20, 2021
After all the theatrical fun and games, you’ll eventually have to pay the piper.
From New York Times • Feb. 18, 2020
Eventually, they would have to pay the piper.
From Salon • Jan. 3, 2020
Time to pay the piper, so to speak.
From Washington Post • Mar. 22, 2018
But really, if you commit a crime you have to pay the piper, what did she expect?
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
![]()
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.