Meaning & use
face the music
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Meaning
phraseidiominformal
To accept the punishment or criticism that follows something you did wrong, instead of trying to avoid it.
Grammar: The verb face changes for tense (he faced the music), but the rest of the phrase stays fixed.
Patterns
- face the music for something
- have to face the music
After breaking the neighbour's window, Tom knew he had to face the music and apologize.
The manager finally faced the music when the poor results were announced.
You can't hide forever; sooner or later you will have to face the music.
Word forms
| third person singular | faces the music |
|---|---|
| past tense | faced the music |
| -ing form | facing the music |
Common combinations
- have to face the music
- She forgot the report, so she had to face the music at Monday's meeting.
- time to face the music
- The deadline has passed, so it is time to face the music.
- finally face the music
- The mayor finally faced the music and admitted his mistake.
- refuse to face the music
- He refused to face the music and left town.
- face the music for something
- The students faced the music for their prank.
Synonyms and how they differ
- take the consequences
- Take the consequences is neutral and literal, while face the music is a colorful idiom that stresses the uncomfortable moment of reckoning.
- own up
- Own up focuses on admitting what you did, whereas face the music also covers receiving the punishment or criticism.
- take your medicine
- Take your medicine is another idiom suggesting that you accept an unpleasant but deserved outcome, and it sounds a little more old-fashioned.
- pay the price
- Pay the price points to the cost of an action, while face the music points to meeting the people who will judge you.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: face the music or face up to?
face the music vs face up to
Face up to something means to accept a difficult truth, while face the music means accept punishment or blame for your own actions.
Practice
Rita had spent the whole budget without asking, and now the director wanted an explanation. What did she have to do?
Choose one answer.
Face the music means to accept the consequences of what you did. Change her tune means to alter an opinion, and the other idioms are about boasting or being in charge.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “face the music”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.