Meaning & use
falling off the wagon
Last updated
“falling off the wagon” is a form of “fall off the wagon”.
Meanings
phraseidiominformalfigurative
Starting again to drink alcohol after a period of avoiding it on purpose.
Grammar: The verb changes with tense: she fell off the wagon, he keeps falling off the wagon.
Patterns
- fall off the wagon
- be worried about falling off the wagon
He was terrified of falling off the wagon at the wedding party.
Falling off the wagon after two years made her feel ashamed.
Friends helped him avoid falling off the wagon during the holidays.
phraseidiominformalhumorous
Giving up a good habit or promise, such as a diet or a ban on sweets, and returning to the old behavior.
Grammar: Used lightly for non-alcohol habits: I fell off the wagon and ate cake.
Patterns
- fall off the wagon with something
I'm falling off the wagon today and ordering fries.
Falling off the diet wagon happens to everyone around the holidays.
She kept falling off the wagon with her no-sugar plan.
Common combinations
- fall off the wagon
- He fell off the wagon last Christmas.
- risk falling off the wagon
- Stress at work made her risk falling off the wagon.
- on the wagon
- He has been on the wagon for six months.
- keep from falling off the wagon
- Support groups help people keep from falling off the wagon.
- back on the wagon
- She got back on the wagon the next morning.
Synonyms and how they differ
- relapsing
- is the neutral, more medical word for slipping back into a harmful habit.
- backsliding
- covers any return to bad behavior, not just drinking, and sounds more moral.
- slipping
- is milder and can mean a small lapse rather than a full return to the old habit.
- lapsing
- suggests a short break from the rule rather than a complete return.
Opposites
Word family
- wagon noun
- a four-wheeled cart
- relapse noun
- a return of a problem after improvement
- on the wagon phrase
- not drinking alcohol
- teetotal adjective
- never drinking alcohol
Commonly confused: falling off the wagon or on the bandwagon?
falling off the wagon vs on the bandwagon
Jumping on the bandwagon means joining a popular trend; it has nothing to do with falling off the wagon.
Practice
After a year without drinking, Sam had a beer at a party. His friend said, 'You fell off the ___.'
Choose one answer.
The idiom is fall off the wagon, meaning to return to alcohol. The other nouns fit normal sentences but are not part of this idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “falling off the wagon”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.