Meaning & use
wet weekend
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Meaning
phrasefixed phraseinformalBritish
a person or event that is boring, dull, or disappointing, especially when compared to something more exciting
Grammar: Usually used in the structure 'like a wet weekend' after verbs like 'look', 'seem', or 'be'.
Patterns
- like a wet weekend
- look like a wet weekend
He looked like a wet weekend after his team lost the final.
The party was like a wet weekend — no music, no dancing, nothing.
She seemed like a wet weekend when she heard the news.
Common combinations
- look like a wet weekend
- After the argument, he looked like a wet weekend.
- be like a wet weekend
- The meeting was like a wet weekend — dull and endless.
- seem like a wet weekend
- The town seems like a wet weekend on Sundays.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bore
- A 'bore' is a dull person; 'wet weekend' is a British idiom comparing someone to a dull, disappointing experience.
- damp squib
- A 'damp squib' is a disappointing event or idea, while 'wet weekend' can refer to a person or an event.
Practice
After the boring lecture, the students said the speaker was like a ___.
Choose one answer.
The idiom 'like a wet weekend' means dull or boring. 'Rainy weekend' is literal and does not carry the idiomatic meaning of dullness.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “wet weekend”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.