take down a peg or two

take down a peg or two
Meaning
To lower someone's high opinion of themselves.
Origin
Possibly derived from the naval practise of tying flag ropes to pegs. The higher the peg, the higher the status.

Meaning and origin of phrases. 2013.

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  • take down a peg or two — wouldn t I just love to take that Mr. Bigshot down a peg or two Syn: humble, humiliate, mortify, bring down, shame, embarrass, abash, put someone in their place, chasten, subdue, squash, deflate, make someone eat humble pie; informal show up,… …   Thesaurus of popular words

  • take someone down a peg (or two) — take/bring/someone down a peg (or two) phrase to make someone realize they are not as important as they think they are I think he needs taking down a peg or two. Thesaurus: to have an effect on someone s emotions or attitudessynonym Main entry …   Useful english dictionary

  • take (or bring) someone down a peg or two — make someone less arrogant. → peg …   English new terms dictionary

  • take someone down a peg or two — ► take someone down a peg or two make someone less arrogant. Main Entry: ↑peg …   English terms dictionary

  • take somebody down a peg (or two) — ˌbring/ˌtake sb ˈdown a peg (or two) idiom to make sb realize that they are not as good, important, etc. as they think they are • He needed to be taken down a peg or two. Main entry: ↑pegidiom …   Useful english dictionary

  • bring down a peg or two — bring (someone/something) down a peg (or two) to show that someone or something is not as good as people think. His arrogant behavior made some people want to see him brought down a peg. She uses her position to take other people down a peg or… …   New idioms dictionary

  • bring someone down a peg (or two) — take/bring/someone down a peg (or two) phrase to make someone realize they are not as important as they think they are I think he needs taking down a peg or two. Thesaurus: to have an effect on someone s emotions or attitudessynonym Main entry …   Useful english dictionary

  • bring someone down a peg or two — bring (someone/something) down a peg (or two) to show that someone or something is not as good as people think. His arrogant behavior made some people want to see him brought down a peg. She uses her position to take other people down a peg or… …   New idioms dictionary

  • bring something down a peg or two — bring (someone/something) down a peg (or two) to show that someone or something is not as good as people think. His arrogant behavior made some people want to see him brought down a peg. She uses her position to take other people down a peg or… …   New idioms dictionary

  • bring somebody down a peg (or two) — ˌbring/ˌtake sb ˈdown a peg (or two) idiom to make sb realize that they are not as good, important, etc. as they think they are • He needed to be taken down a peg or two. Main entry: ↑pegidiom …   Useful english dictionary

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