Meanings
alternative the boot is on the other foot
- idiomaticThe 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 DopeSynonyms: the tables are turned
Synonyms & antonyms
phraseThe roles of people in a situation have been reversed, such that the advantage has shifted to a party which was previously disadvantaged.
Translations
Hungarian fordul a kocka
- fordul a kockathe roles have been reversed
Icelandic komið annað hljóð í strokkinn
- komið annað hljóð í strokkinnthe roles have been reversed
Italian essere dall'altra parte della barricata
- essere dall'altra parte della barricatathe roles have been reversed
Polish role się odwróciły
- role się odwróciłythe roles have been reversed
Russian ситуация изменилась на противоположенную
- ситуация изменилась на противоположенную (situacija izmenilasʹ na protivopoložennuju)the roles have been reversed
Cite this entry
the shoe is on the other foot. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20shoe%20is%20on%20the%20other%20foot
“the shoe is on the other foot.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20shoe%20is%20on%20the%20other%20foot. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the shoe is on the other foot,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20shoe%20is%20on%20the%20other%20foot.
Source: the shoe is on the other foot on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.