waking up and smelling the coffee

A form of wake up and smell the coffee — Often in the infinitive or imperative: to face reality and stop deluding oneself.

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Meanings

verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of wake up and smell the coffee
Cite this entry
APA

waking up and smelling the coffee. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waking%20up%20and%20smelling%20the%20coffee

MLA

“waking up and smelling the coffee.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waking%20up%20and%20smelling%20the%20coffee. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “waking up and smelling the coffee,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waking%20up%20and%20smelling%20the%20coffee.

Source: waking up and smelling the coffee on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.