down on his uppers Idiom, Proverb
on one's uppers|on|uppers
adj. phr.,
informal Very poor.
Mr. White had been out of work for several months and was on his uppers. Compare: DOWN ON ONE'S LUCK.
on one's uppers
on one's uppers Poor, in reduced circumstances, as in as in
The Smiths try to hide the fact that they're on their uppers. First recorded in 1886, this metaphoric term alludes to having worn out the soles of one's shoes so badly that only the top portions remain.
down on (one's) uppers
Having no money; broke. The byword was originally acclimated to call bodies who were so poor that they had beat their shoes down to the uppers (the allotment of the shoe aloft the sole). I am down on my uppers this week, so can we go out for drinks abutting week, afterwards I get paid?Learn more: down, on, upperdown on his uppers
Needy; collapsed on adamantine times. Men's shoes accept two parts: the cheers (soles and heels) and the uppers, which awning the foot. Someone whose banking action was so bad that he couldn't allow to accept the soles and heels replaced afterwards actuality beat abroad was actually down on (in the faculty of “to”) his uppers. A agnate byword is “down at the heels,” and affective higher, “out at the elbows.”Learn more: down, on, upper