put a horse out to pasture
put (someone or something) out to pasture
1. Literally, to retire an animal from working by allowing it roam in a field or pasture. This horse has been my constant companion for the last 15 years on the ranch, but now I think it's about time to put him out to pasture. You ought to put that old donkey out to pasture, don't you think?
2. By extension, to force, coerce, or pressure someone into retiring from their work. The CEO shaped the company into what it is today, but she's getting on in years and the board of directors has decided to put her out to pasture.
3. By extension to Definition 1, to retire a piece of equipment from use or replace it with something newer. I got through my entire graduate degree on this clunky old laptop, but I think it's finally time to put it out to pasture.
See also: out, pasture, put
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
put a horse out to pasture
to retire a horse by allowing it to live out its days in a pasture with no work. (See also put someone out to pasture.) The horse could no longer work, so we put it out to pasture.
See also: horse, out, pasture, put
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
- put (someone or something) out to pasture
- put out to pasture
- put somebody out to pasture
- put someone out to pasture
- literally
- put out to grass/pasture, to be
- force or an animal from
- range over
- range over (something or some place)
- (the) survival of the fittest