# hand in one's dinner pail

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/hand-in-ones-dinner-pail
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To die.

## Examples

- The old dog finally handed in his dinner pail.
- The town was shocked when the local baker handed in his dinner pail after fifty years of service.
- Following a long and weary life spent laboring in the fields, the patriarch quietly handed in his dinner pail during the first frost of winter.

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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.