Meaning & use
taken down a peg
Last updated
“taken down a peg” is a form of “take down a peg”.
Meaning
phraseidiominformal
made to feel less proud or important, often by a criticism or defeat
Grammar: Used as a passive phrase: someone is taken down a peg (by something). The active form is 'take someone down a peg'.
Patterns
- be taken down a peg
- take someone down a peg
- taken down a peg or two
After winning the first round, he was taken down a peg by a much stronger opponent.
She was getting too confident, so the teacher took her down a peg with a few hard questions.
The team was taken down a peg or two after losing to a much weaker side.
Word forms
| base form | take down a peg |
|---|---|
| third person singular | takes down a peg |
| past tense | took down a peg |
| past participle | taken down a peg |
| -ing form | taking down a peg |
Common combinations
- be taken down a peg
- He was taken down a peg after his mistake was pointed out in public.
- take someone down a peg or two
- The manager took him down a peg or two for boasting about his sales.
- need to be taken down a peg
- She's getting a bit too sure of herself; she needs to be taken down a peg.
Synonyms and how they differ
- humbled
- 'Humbled' is more formal and can also mean feeling grateful or modest after an honor; 'taken down a peg' usually suggests a deliberate act to reduce someone's pride.
- cut down to size
- This idiom is very close in meaning but often suggests a stronger, more humiliating correction.
Opposites
Word family
- peg noun
- A small wooden or plastic pin used for fastening things; in this idiom it suggests a level or rank.
Commonly confused: taken down a peg or take down?
taken down a peg vs take down
'Take down' alone means to remove something from a high place or to write something down. The full idiom 'take down a peg' is needed for the meaning of making someone less proud.
Practice
After he bragged about his exam results, his friends decided to ______.
Choose one answer.
The correct word order is 'take someone down a peg'. 'Take him down a peg or two' is also possible but adds 'or two'; the basic idiom is 'take him down a peg'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “taken down a peg”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.