Meaning of Idiom ‘Dead Meat’
To be dead meat means to be in serious trouble; as good as dead; dead.
The original meaning of dead meat, used since the mid-1800’s, was dead, but since mid-1950’s the idiom has been used as an exaggerated threat and rarely refers to actual death.
Sentence Examples
“If you don’t pay me my five bucks you’re dead meat!”
“Play one of your little pranks on me and you’ll be dead meat.”
“I owe a lot of money to some bad people. I’m dead meat.”
“If I see you outside of school you’re dead meat.”
Origin
Used since the mid-1800’s, this idiom alludes to a dead body being nothing but “meat.”
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