to dance and pay the piper
Preserved but no longer current.
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 “to dance and pay the piper” mean?
To work hard to amuse and to have to bear all the expense and take all the trouble oneself as well. The allusion is to Matt, xi, 17: — "We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced.
Is “to dance and pay the piper” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.