bet one's boots

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English[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (file)

Verb[edit]

bet one's boots (third-person singular simple present bets one's boots, present participle betting one's boots, simple past and past participle bet one's boots)

  1. (idiomatic) To be absolutely sure of something; to be certain enough to wager an essential possession.
    • 1913, D. H. Lawrence, chapter 12, in Sons and Lovers:
      "You see," he said, "she never knew the fearful importance of marriage . . . and treated him badly, I'll bet my boots."
    • 1915, William Somerset Maugham, chapter 27, in Of Human Bondage:
      "If a man tells you he's a gentleman you can bet your boots he isn't," he retorted.
    • 2011 April 24, D. D. Guttenplan, “Scotland Wrestles With Question of Tuition Fees”, in New York Times, retrieved 19 January 2013:
      Lord Sutherland sees tuition fees in Scotland as inevitable. “Only you can bet your boots they won't call it a fee,” he said.

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