pay the piper
Answer for misdeeds
To pay the piper is to face the consequences of one's actions, especially after a period of enjoyment or avoidance.
The phrase comes from the idea that someone must eventually pay the musician who played: You can put it off, but sooner or later you have to pay the piper.
Often implies delayed reckoning for earlier indulgence or recklessness.
- face the musicAccept deserved consequences
- reckoningSettlement of accounts
- consequencesResults of actions taken
- pay the priceSuffer deserved consequences
- chickens come homePast wrongs revisit their source
pay · comeuppance · retribution · pay the penalty · make amends · accountability · karmic debt · settle up · settle the score · bear the brunt · pay the fiddler · responsibility · atonement · debt · repercussions · carry the can · punishment · bite the bullet
- accountabilityaccountability, responsibility, accountable, take responsibility, answerability
- consequencesconsequence, consequences, result, results, effect
- money slangbucks, dough, moolah, cheddar, cash
- payingpay, pay up, pay out, pay off, foot the bill
pay the piperget away with it
slip through the cracks · pass the buck · beat the rap · skate by · have one's cake and eat it too
pay the piperget off easy
pipe, payment, paid, unpaid, pipes, piping, pays, repayment, pipeline