settling on the lees
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Making the best of a bad job ; settling down on what is left, after having squandered the main part of one's fortune.
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 “settling on the lees” mean?
Making the best of a bad job ; settling down on what is left, after having squandered the main part of one's fortune.
Is “settling on the lees” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.