Sleeping with the fishes – meaning, origin and usage

If you’ve been told that someone you care about is now “sleeping with the fishes,” I’m afraid it’s not good news.

This article will cover what the idiom means, how it originated, and how you can use the phrase. (We’re throwing in a few examples for easier understanding.) Then we’ll be rounding off with a discussion on similar and synonymous sayings.

Let’s go for it!

What’s the meaning behind the phrase “sleeping with the fishes”?

The phrase “sleeping with the fishes” is a metaphorical way of saying that someone is dead and their body has been disposed of in a body of water, often implying a violent or gruesome death.

What’s the origin of the phrase “sleeping with the fishes”?

The phrase “sleeping with the fishes” is a particularly old one, since a variation of this wording dates as far back as Ancient Greece, where it appeared in Homer’s The Iliad. However this is not when the phrase was popularised into the mainstream.

There are several examples of the phrase in use in the 1800’s and 1900’s, but it wasn’t until the release of the film The Godfather (in 1972), based on a book by the same name by Mario Puzo. that the euphemism was popularised. Specifically, there is a scene in which the character Tessio carries in Brasi’s bullet-proof vest with a fish inside. Another character says, “What the hell is this?” To which Tessio replies “It’s a Sicilian message. It means Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes.”

How you can use the phrase “sleeping with the fishes” - featuring examples

The phrase “sleeping with the fishes” is a slang term, but it is suitable to use in front of children because it is an euphemism, or in other words a way of referring to something without using words like “death” or “dead” directly.

The phrase is mostly used as a veiled threat. For example a frustrated person might say to someone “Do that again and I promise you’ll be sleeping with the fishes!”

Alternatively, someone might use the phrase to refer to a long-term missing person. For example by saying something along the lines of “She must be sleeping with the fishes by this point.”

The phrase has become a little cliches, and you will often find it used in novels featuring organised crime.

What are some other ways of saying “sleeping with the fishes”?

If you’re speaking with someone who may be unfamiliar with English idioms, you may be pleased to hear that there are many alternative ways of saying the same thing. Here are some examples of such sayings to consider:

• Six feet under
• Pushing up daisies
• Kicked the bucket
• Passed/slipped away
• Dead / deceased
• Disposed of
• Met a violent end

Final word

So, in short, the phrase “sleeping with the fishes” is a euphemism, and is a way of saying that someone is dead and their body has been disposed of in a body of water, possibly following a violent or even gruesome death.

Although this phrase has ancient roots, it is through the film The Godfather, in the 1970’s, that it gained notoriety as a Sicilian Mafia message. The phrase has since become something of a cliche and continues to be used in novels and in everyday language today.