# fall off the back of a lorry

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/fall-off-the-back-of-a-lorry
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Of an item of merchandise, to come into a person's possession without having been paid for; to have been acquired illegally.

## Examples

- His new phone fell off the back of a lorry.
- The police asked where he got the laptop, suspecting it had fallen off the back of a lorry.
- In the pub, he winked and said the whiskey fell off the back of a lorry, though everyone knew he had stolen it from the warehouse.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.