Tie one on

[NellyAndrea]

In this text a young couple is talking about his father, who has a drinking problem.

My question is, what does he mean by this sentence:

He'll probably really tie one on tonight to celebrate how nice he is.

 

[Packard]

Tie one on = get very drunk.

 

[Copyright]

To tie one on is to get drunk... not a good thing for a man with a drinking problem. He's been nice (and perhaps sober for a change)... so to celebrate, he'll get drunk.

 

[lablady]

Hello NellyAndrea,

It's an idiom that means to get drunk.

Edit: Packard and Copyright beat me to it. Oh well, I still have a follow-up question so I'll let this stay.

I have no idea how this phrase came about, or just exactly it is that one is tying on when they get drunk. Maybe someone else knows and can appease my curiosity, too.

 

[Copyright]

Well, there's Wordwizard and Words@Random with suggestions of origins. I'll let them tell you what they know.

 

[lablady]

Well, there's Wordwizard and Words@Random with suggestions of origins. I'll let them tell you what they know.

Thanks Copyright,
I'll add these sites to my collection of resources for interesting tidbits of information. They could come in handy for future curiosities.

 

[NellyAndrea]

Thank you