sink or swim
Preserved but no longer current.
No matter what happens. Convicted witches were thrown into the water to "sink or swim"; if they sank they were drowned ; if they swam it was clear proof they were in league with the Evil One; so it did not much matter, one way or the other.
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 “sink or swim” mean?
No matter what happens. Convicted witches were thrown into the water to "sink or swim"; if they sank they were drowned ; if they swam it was clear proof they were in league with the Evil One; so it did not much matter, one way or the other.
Is “sink or swim” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.