English Reference
Idiom idiom

screwed, blued and tattooed

Slang

Placed in a perplexing, very difficult situation, especially a situation in which one has been unjustly victimized.

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


SIMPLE

After the scam, he felt completely screwed, blued and tattooed.

CONTEXTUAL

When the company fired everyone without notice or pay, the employees felt totally screwed, blued and tattooed.

COMPLEX

Left with no legal recourse after the contract was voided, the small business owner realized he was well and truly screwed, blued and tattooed.


disputed origin

From screwed (“fornicated”) + blewed (“blown, experienced fellatio”) + tattooed. Describes the ideal experience of a sailor during a short shore leave.


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    blue chamber

    A forbidden room.

  2. 02

    blue devils

    Low spirits; depression.

  3. 03

    blue moon

    A long time.

  4. 04

    blue note

    The flatted 5th scale degree in the blues scale.

  5. 05

    blue ribbon

    Highly superior in quality, style, substance, prestige, etc.

  6. 06

    blue state

    A state of the United States voting Democratic in a given election, or tending to vote Democratic in general.

  7. 07

    blue wall of silence

    Strict secretiveness maintained by the members of a police force with respect to information which might be contrary to their interests, especially information concerning questionable police actions.

  8. 08

    bolt from the blue

    A complete surprise; something totally unexpected.

Last updated August 10, 2026