Word.ws English Dictionary

the boot is on the other foot

the boot is on the other foot is the alternative form of the shoe is on the other foot.

Meaning of the shoe is on the other foot

Phrase

the shoe is on the other foot

  1. (idiomatic) The roles of people in a situation have been reversed, such that the advantage has shifted to a party which was previously disadvantaged.
    • Some of the birds on this ship took me for a sucker and tried to make a rummy out of me but I was wise to their game and I guess the shoe is on the other foot this time.1919, Ring Lardner, chapter 1, in The Real Dope
    Synonyms:
    the tables are turned

Questions about the boot is on the other foot

What is the boot is on the other foot the alternative form of?
The boot is on the other foot is the alternative form of the shoe is on the other foot.

Words near the boot is on the other foot in the dictionary

  1. the bomb
  2. the bomb diggity
  3. the bomb diggy
  4. the bombs
  5. The Boot
  6. the boot is on the other foot
  7. The Bottom
  8. the box they're going to bury it in
  9. the boxes they're going to bury them in
  10. the boys
  11. The Branch

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: the boot is on the other foot (page history and authors); the shoe is on the other foot (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-the boot is on the other foot.wav.

Cite this entry: “the boot is on the other foot.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/the_boot_is_on_the_other_foot. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.