kick the bucket

Meet one's end

Kick the bucket is informal, slightly humorous slang for dying: He finally kicked the bucket at ninety-three.

The phrase softens the bluntness of death through its absurdity—nobody knows what bucket is being kicked.

It's casual enough to seem flippant when applied to recent or tragic deaths.

euphemism

pass away

Euphemism for dying

final rest · eternal sleep · late · perished · no more · left us · rest in peace · bit the dust · met their maker · pushing up daisies

death

funeral

Service honoring the dead

casket · morgue · mortuary · obituary · coroner · autopsy · deceased · bereavement · interment · pallbearer

finality

end

Final portion or cessation

termination · cessation · conclusion · finale · last breath · final curtain · lights out · curtains · the end · swan song

Categories
Opposites
life status

kick the bucketsurvive

Continue to exist

live · stay alive · pull through · make it · live on

entry into vs. exit from existence

kick the bucketbe born

Begin living

come into the world · see the light of day · come into being · arrive · spring to life

register/tone for death

kick the bucketpass away

Euphemism for dying

depart this life · breathe one's last · meet one's maker · succumb · expire

Family

kick, bucket, kicks, kicking, kickoff, buckets, sidekick, kicked, kicker

Familiarity
Top 50,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Negative · Everyday, not technical · Rated PG