Meaning
Securely achieved, consumed, or accumulated, so that it lies behind you and can be drawn on. Applied literally to food and drink swallowed, and far more often today to experience, qualifications, wins, or completed tasks that now count to your credit. Standard across English varieties, informal to neutral in tone. Informal to neutral; positive, matter-of-fact connotation of accumulated resources. Regional use: General English (clothing origin).
Origin
The literal image is of eaten food or drunk liquid settled in the stomach beneath the belt line. Grammarist traces the expression to the late 1700s and early 1800s, when it served as a tally of alcoholic drinks consumed, before broadening to food; Etymonline records the literal sense, to get something into one's stomach, from 1839. The figurative extension to acquired experience, skill, or achievements is early twentieth century: Etymonline dates it to 1931, while Grammarist places the shift in the 1920s and 1930s. A specifically Scottish origin sometimes mentioned in popular accounts was not corroborated by the sources consulted.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- get something under your belt
- have something under your belt
- under one's belt
Usage Examples
- With two marathon finishes under her belt, she signed up for the ultramarathon without hesitating.
- Get some solid sleep and a proper meal under your belt before you open the exam paper.
- The studio now has a decade of animated hits under its belt, which buys patience for riskier projects.