bottle it meaning (informal): definition

bottle it

verb

Etymology From Cockney rhyming slang bottle and glass, originally meaning arse. lose one's nerve was vulgarly lose one's arse, euphemised to lose one's bottle, clipped to bottle and subsequently given a dummy pronoun. See bottle.

Cockney, UK, Informal, Slang To suppress an action or expression, especially when due to lack of courage.

Cockney, UK, Informal, Slang To lose one's nerve.

Cockney, UK, Informal, Slang To run away, especially when due to lack of courage.

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Cockney, UK, Especially, Informal, Slang To fail in an embarrassing way in a crucial situation, especially due to nerves.

For a while, it was a three-horse race and, if anything, it looked like José Mourinho's Chelsea were the team to beat. Chelsea bottled it, Liverpool beat Manchester City and the title was theirs to lose ... which they did in that match against Chelsea.2022 October 6, James Richardson, The Totally Football Book, Hachette UK, →ISBN:
If you want to win Wimbledon, you have to be controlled mentally, but he's too volatile. He's just not a level-headed guy out there. He's had many chances and he's always bottled it.2024 June 20, Katherine Reilly, Match Point: an enemies to lovers tennis romance perfect for fans of Wimbledon, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

Related terms: bottle out