# make like a banana and split

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/make-like-a-banana-and-split
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To leave, depart.

## Examples

- It is late, so I will make like a banana and split.
- The party is getting boring, so let's make like a banana and split before it gets too crowded.
- Realizing that his presence was no longer desired, he decided to make like a banana and split before the argument escalated further.

## Origin

Attested as a play on the dessert known as a banana split, the phrase functions as a pun on the slang sense of the verb split, meaning to depart. The construction relies upon the phonetic identity between the name of the confection and the instruction to leave a location.

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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.