Under the table
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
Done secretly or illegally, hidden from view.
Origin
From 19th-century Britain, tied to underhanded trades; 'under the table' meant unseen, as in an 1808 gambling tale of rigged cards. By the 1920s, Prohibition America boosted it for booze or cash, as in a 1927 'Times' piece on bribes. It reflects a Victorian underside and mob-era secrecy, growing into a slick idiom of the covert.
Usage Examples
- He paid under the table to skip the line.
- They settled it under the table; no paperwork.
- She got the gig with some under-the-table cash.
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