put (someone or something) out to grass

1. Of an animal, to give it access to a grassy area to graze. Tommy should be back in a minute—he's just putting the cattle out to grass.

2. Of a person, to force, coerce, or pressure them into retiring. The CEO shaped the company into what it is today, but she's getting on in years and the board of directors has decided to put her out to grass.

3. Of a piece of equipment, to retire it from use. I got through my entire graduate degree on this clunky old laptop, but I think it's finally time to put it out to grass.

put out to grass

Also, put out to pasture. Cause to retire, as in With mandatory retirement they put you out to grass at age 65, or She's not all that busy now that she's been put out to pasture. These idioms refer to farm animals sent to graze when they are no longer useful for other work.

put/turn/send somebody out to ˈgrass

(informal, humorous) force somebody to stop doing their job, especially because they are old: Old Harry doesn’t seem able to remember anything nowadays. Isn’t it time he was put out to grass?

This expression refers to old farm horses or other animals, which no longer work and stay in the fields all day.

See also: grass, out, put, send, somebody, to, turn

put out to grass/pasture, to be

To be retired from active duty; to rusticate. This term, which refers to animals that are turned out to a meadow or range, particularly a horse that is too old to work, was transferred to human beings as early as the sixteenth century. John Heywood used it in his 1546 proverb collection: “He turnde hir out at doores to grasse on the playne.”