Meanings
- Northern EnglandidiomaticOn one's own, alone.
Synonyms: on one's own, on one's bill, on one's Jack Jones
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseOn one's own, alone.
Origin
Rhyming slang: tod = Tod Sloan = own, a reference to the US jockey Tod Sloan. Various theories suggest a possible additional connection between Tod Sloan and solitude: that he died alone in impoverished circumstances, that he pursued his career "alone" on his own terms, or that he won races from the front, riding alone.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
on one's tod. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20one's%20tod
“on one's tod.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20one's%20tod. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “on one's tod,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20one's%20tod.
Source: on one's tod on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.