wouldn't be seen dead
To find incredibly horrifying; embarrassing or otherwise entirely unsuitable for oneself.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“I wouldn't be seen dead wearing that ugly hat.”
“She loves modern art, but she wouldn't be seen dead in that old-fashioned museum.”
“Despite his family's insistence that he attend the gala, he declared he wouldn't be seen dead at such a pretentious event.”
- 01
beat a dead horse
To persist or continue far beyond any purpose, interest or reason.
- 02
brown bread
[Cockney slang]dead
- 03
butter wouldn't melt in someone's mouth
The identified person appears to be benign, mild-mannered, or calm (but with an integral suggestion that, to the contrary, they really are untrustworthy, disagreeable, or mean-spirited).
- 04
come back from the dead
To experience a resurgence after one's productive years are assumed to have ended.
- 05
dead 'n' buried
Contraction of dead and buried.
- 06
dead air
An unintended interruption in a broadcast during which nothing is transmitted: a silent period on radio or a silent period with no picture on television.
- 07
dead and buried
Of an issue, moot, passed, irrelevant, forgotten.
- 08
dead asleep
Sleeping in a deep sleep
Last updated August 10, 2026