English Reference
Idiom idiom

hand someone his hat


To require someone to depart; to dismiss someone.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.


SIMPLE

“The boss had to hand him his hat after the mistake.”

CONTEXTUAL

“The manager decided to hand him his hat when he realized the employee was stealing from the register.”

COMPLEX

“After the board discovered the executive had been embezzling funds for years, they promptly handed him his hat and escorted him from the building.”


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    all hat and no cattle

    Full of big talk but lacking action, power, or substance; pretentious.

  2. 02

    all hat and no cowboy

    Full of big talk but lacking action, power, or substance; pretentious.

  3. 03

    as if someone owns the place

    Alternative form of like someone owns the place.

  4. 04

    back of one's hand

    A display of disrespect or scorn.

  5. 05

    bear a hand

    To make haste; to help quickly.

  6. 06

    beat someone round the ears

    To beat (a person) with blows about the head.

  7. 07

    big hand

    Synonym of minute hand (on a clock face).

  8. 08

    bite someone's hand off

    To enthusiastically accept an offer.

Last updated August 10, 2026