put the tin lid on it

verb

To be one final unwelcome event that rounds off a series of problems or misfortunes.

“I got a flat tyre, then the heater broke, and then, just to put the tin lid on it, I ran out of petrol.”

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbput the tin lid on it (third-person singular simple present puts the tin lid on it, present participle putting the tin lid on it, simple past and past participle put the tin lid on it)

present singular third person puts the tin lid on it · participle present putting the tin lid on it

  1. To be one final unwelcome event that rounds off a series of problems or misfortunes.

    I got a flat tyre, then the heater broke, and then, just to put the tin lid on it, I ran out of petrol.

Cite this entry
APA

put the tin lid on it. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20the%20tin%20lid%20on%20it

MLA

“put the tin lid on it.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20the%20tin%20lid%20on%20it. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “put the tin lid on it,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20the%20tin%20lid%20on%20it.

Source: put the tin lid on it on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.