threw a sickie
Faked being unwell
Threw a sickie means called in sick to work or school while not actually ill—faking illness to get a day off.
Primarily British and Australian slang: Half the office threw a sickie after the Cup final.
The phrase captures the slight theatrical performance involved in convincing someone you're unwell.
- absenteeismHabitual failure to attend
- pretendAct as though
- illnessState of poor health
- fabricateInvent or manufacture
- misleadCause false belief
regionalism · bluff · lie · white lie · bludge · slang · vernacular · burnout · stomachache · skive · headache · phrase · idiom · falsify · duvet day · jargon · human resources · informal speech