see a man about a horse

English

Etymology

A variant of see a man about a dog, from the implied context of seeing someone about a bet on a horse race.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Verb

see a man about a horse (third-person singular simple present sees a man about a horse, present participle seeing a man about a horse, simple past saw a man about a horse, past participle seen a man about a horse)

1. (idiomatic, euphemistic) Used in place of a real explanation when excusing oneself for a short period of time, particularly to use a toilet.

   I'll be back in two shakes of a lamb's tail. I've just got to visit the ladies' room to see a man about a horse.

Synonyms

• (all senses): see a man, see a man about a dog
• (use the toilet): see a man about the plumbing, see also use the toilet, Thesaurus:urinate, and Thesaurus:defecate

References

• (Etymology)[1].
• Ayto, John. Oxford Slang. 1998.
• Farmer, J.S. and W.E. Henley. Slang and its Analogues. 1986.
• Chapman, Robert L. Dictionary of American Slang. 1995.
• Matthews, Mitford M. A Dictionary of Americanisms. 1951.
• Spears, Richard A. Slang and Euphemism. 1981.
• Spears, Richard A. The Slang and Jargon of Drugs and Drink. 1986.