Meaning & use
picking daisies
Last updated
“picking daisies” is a form of “pick daisies”.
Meanings
phraseidiomeuphemistichumorous
used to mean that someone is dead, often in a light or humorous way
Grammar: Almost always in the -ing form: 'He's picking daisies.' It is not used in the simple present to mean 'he picks daisies' in this sense.
Patterns
- be picking daisies
- push up daisies
Old Mr. Harris? He's been picking daisies for ten years now.
If I don't get this project done, I'll be picking daisies by next week.
The old dog is picking daisies in the backyard — we buried him under the apple tree.
phraseidiom
literally, the activity of gathering daisies from a field or garden
Grammar: Used literally, it simply describes the action: 'The children were picking daisies in the meadow.'
Patterns
- picking daisies in the field
- picking daisies for a bouquet
The children spent the afternoon picking daisies in the meadow.
She was picking daisies to make a small bouquet for her mother.
We saw a group of tourists picking daisies along the roadside.
Common combinations
- be picking daisies
- Don't worry about him — he's probably picking daisies somewhere.
- push up daisies
- If he keeps driving like that, he'll be pushing up daisies soon.
- picking daisies in the field
- The little girl was picking daisies in the field behind the house.
Synonyms and how they differ
- push up daisies
- A similar humorous euphemism for being dead, but it emphasizes being buried in the ground.
- six feet under
- Also means dead and buried, but it is more direct and less playful than 'picking daisies'.
Practice
What does 'He's picking daisies' most likely mean in casual conversation?
Choose one answer.
In casual speech, 'picking daisies' is a humorous euphemism for being dead, so option 1 is correct. Option 0 is the literal meaning but is less common in this context; option 2 describes 'picking daisies' as daydreaming, which is not the usual meaning; option 3 is too specific and not the idiomatic sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “picking daisies”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.