off the wagon
1. Having returned to drinking alcohol or using recreational drugs after abstaining for a period of time. There have been a few times that I've nearly fallen off the wagon, but thinking of my responsibility to my daughter helps keep me sober. I'm worried about John—I think he may be off the wagon.
2. By extension, partaking in some activity after a period of abstinence. He gave up video games while he was studying for his final exams, but now that it's summer break he's off the wagon again. I was really good about my diet, but I fell off the wagon and went for some fast food last night.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
*off the wagon
1. Fig. drinking liquor after a period of abstinence. (*Typically: be ~; fall ~; get ~.) Poor John fell off the wagon again. Drunk as a skunk. He was off the wagon for a year the last time before he sobered up.
2. Fig. back on drugs after a period of abstinence. (*Typically: be ~; fall ~; get ~.) Wilbur is off the wagon and shooting up again. He can't be off the wagon, because he has never stopped using, even for a day.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
off the wagon
1. mod. drinking liquor after a period of abstinence. Poor John fell off the wagon again. Drunk as a skunk.
2. mod. back on drugs after a period of abstinence. Harry the Horse is off the wagon and shooting up again.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
off the wagon
Slang No longer abstaining from alcoholic beverages.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.