leave someone holding the bag
English · Thesaurus
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leave someone holding the bag
Where it comes from
Originated in 18th-century Britain, referring to a person left holding stolen goods while the rest of a criminal gang escapes.
verb leaves someone holding the bag · leaving someone holding the bag · left someone holding the bag
- To abandon somebody, leaving him or her holding the responsibility or blame. After the accident, he just vanished and left me holding the bag.
- To remove the value from an article or arrangement and leave somebody holding the empty (or valueless) container.
Similar: leave someone in the lurch, leave someone holding the baby, leave someone high and dry
Thesaurus
Translations
Every language
verb leave somebody holding the responsibility or blame
| Español | echar el muerto |
|---|---|
| Português | pagar as favas |
| Français | faire porter le chapeau |
| Italiano | lasciare col cerino in mano |
| Русский | пове́сить всех собак povésitʹ vsex sobak, свалить вину svalitʹ vinu |
Talk about this word "leave someone holding the bag." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/leave%20someone%20holding%20the%20bag. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026. leave someone holding the bag. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/leave%20someone%20holding%20the%20bag "leave someone holding the bag." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/leave%20someone%20holding%20the%20bag.Cite this
@misc{leave_someone_holding_the_bag_2026,
title = {leave someone holding the bag},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/leave%20someone%20holding%20the%20bag},
urldate = {2026-11-07}
}
