go down the wrong pipe

go down the wrong pipe

Of food or drink, to enter the trachea (wind pipe) instead of the esophagus, typically resulting in coughing and difficulty breathing. A: "Oh, geez, are you OK?" B: "Ack, yeah—my tea just went down the wrong pipe!" Oh, she'll be all right, I think she just took a drink and it went down the wrong pipe. Sorry about all that coughing! Whew, my water went down the wrong pipe.

See also: down, go, pipe, wrong

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