a day after the fair
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Too late; the fair you came to see is over. Day in, day out. All day long and every day. Every dog has its day. See DOG.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “a day after the fair” mean?
Too late; the fair you came to see is over. Day in, day out. All day long and every day. Every dog has its day. See DOG.
Is “a day after the fair” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.