hold onto your hat
One should prepare for a surprise or shock.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Hold onto your hat, because the news is quite surprising.”
“The director told the staff to hold onto their hats before announcing the sudden company merger.”
“You should hold onto your hat, as the final chapter of this novel contains a twist that completely redefines the entire plot.”
- 01
all hat and no cattle
Full of big talk but lacking action, power, or substance; pretentious.
- 02
all hat and no cowboy
Full of big talk but lacking action, power, or substance; pretentious.
- 03
apron-string hold
An estate held by a man during his wife's life.
- 04
black hat
A villain in a story, especially in a Western (a film or other work of the Western genre).
- 05
brick in one's hat
Drunkenness.
- 06
buy and hold
A passive investment strategy where an investor purchases an asset and retains it for many years, rather than trading it frequently.
- 07
buy straw hats in winter
Of stocks, to buy when both demand and price are low, so as to sell when demand and price are high.
- 08
does the Pope wear a funny hat
Obviously! Rhetorical question in response to a question where the answer is an emphatic yes.
Last updated August 10, 2026