kick over the traces

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#1·5h ago

(UK, dated, informal) To rebel against authority; to defy orders or instructions.

1920, A. E. W. Mason, The Summons, XXX: A Revolution in Sir Chichester,

Origin: Refers to a horse kicking its legs over to the wrong side of the traces, straps of leather connecting it to the vehicle being towed. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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#2·5h ago

(UK, dated, informal) To live overextravagantly; to come to grief by fast living.

: "I remember that she once said to me, 'Women do get the worst of it when they kick over the traces,'" Hillyard resumed. "And undoubtedly they do. On the other hand you have McKerrel's hard-headed verdict, 'If these poor neurotic bodies…

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