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Glite Dictionary
to fill one's boots

to fill one's boots

9.1
To enjoy something fully and take as much as you want
  • idiom
  • UK
: disfrutar a lo grande
  • The store is having a huge sale, so go ahead and fill your boots with whatever you like.

Examples

  • At the buffet, you can fill your boots with all your favorite dishes.

  • During the festival, it's your chance to fill your boots with delicious treats and fun activities.

  • Oh, fill your boots.

    Rare Birds (2001)

Synonyms

to get my fill
vsto fill one's boots
3 6.6

Have enough of something so you do not want more

is about enjoying as much as possible when given the chance
to get one's fill
vsto fill one's boots
  • Informal
3.7

Have as much of something as you want until you feel satisfied

is about enjoying as much as possible when given the chance

Antonyms

to refuse
∞ 1.7

To say no to a request or offer

to spurn
18 7.7

To refuse a person or an offer in a rude way

How Much

to fill one's boots
  • UK
9.1
to take
∞ 1.0
little bit
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

fill one's boots infinitive
filled one's boots past
filled one's boots past participle
filling one's boots present participle
fills one's boots third person singular

Morphology

fill + one + boots

The literal meanings of 'fill' + 'one's' + 'boots' suggest putting something into footwear, which does not map onto the idiomatic sense of taking as much as you want or enjoying something to excess. This is a colloquial, culture-specific idiom whose intended meaning is not compositionally predictable from its parts, so a B1 learner who only knows the constituent words would not reliably infer it.

Etymology

Fill one's boots may come from soldiers after a battle who would fill their boots with coins and small goods to carry home, so the image of stuffing your boots shows taking a lot. That's why the phrase means 'to take as much as you want' or 'enjoy something fully'.