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Glite Dictionary
to get back on the horse

to get back on the horse

6 5.0
To try again after a failure, especially when you feel afraid
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : volver a intentarlo
  • After failing the exam, she decided it was time to get back on the horse and study harder for the next one.

Well, once you kind of, you know, relapse or people use the term a lot, then yeah, it's hard to get back on the horse.

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Examples

  • You're just afraid to get back on the horse.

    A Nice Girl Like You (2020)

  • I sulked for several months and then started dyeing my own fabric in an effort to get back on the horse.

    Blog text (23)

  • Come back Monday and get back on the horse.

    City of Angels (1998)

  • It's time to get back on the horse.

    Sticks & Stones (2008)

  • You gotta get back on the horse.

    White House Down (2013)

  • - Well, after our last talk, I got thinking, I need to get back on the horse, get a job, make something of myself.

    Waiting on Mary (2016)

  • You've got to get back on the horse again.

    Kill List (2011)

  • Hillary, you need to make an executive decision to get back on the horse.

    The Single Moms Club (2014)

  • You've just got to get back on the horse.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • If you weren't accountable in that moment, refocus, get back on the horse, move forward.

Synonyms

to bounce back
vsto get back on the horse
60 3.5

Get better quickly after an illness, problem, or setback

means resuming activity after loss of confidence, not just a fast recovery
to retry
vsto get back on the horse
4 2.7

Do something again after it fails or is interrupted

implies doing the same again with emphasis on regaining confidence
to pick oneself up off the floor
vsto get back on the horse
  • Informal
6.1

To get better after a failure and start again

tries again specifically after losing confidence or feeling discouraged
to reattempt
vsto get back on the horse
3.2

To try again to do something after failing

focuses on restarting after a loss of confidence rather than just repeating the action
to kick at the can
vsto get back on the horse
  • US
8.4

Try again to do something after failing

is used for informal repeat attempts rather than deliberate confidence rebuilding

Antonyms

to give up
∞ 1.2

To stop trying to do something or accept defeat

to quit
668 1.0

To stop doing a habit or activity like smoking

How Determined

to persevere
22 5.1
to stick with
341 3.6
to get back on the horse
  • Informal
6 5.0
to try again
461 1.0
to hesitate
318 2.5

Surface Forms

get back on the horse infinitive
got back on the horse past
got back on the horse past participle
getting back on the horse present participle
gets back on the horse third person singular

Morphology

get + back + on + the + horse

The phrase uses the literal senses of 'get', 'back', 'on' and 'horse' but the intended meaning is a metaphorical extension (remounting after a fall → trying again after a setback). This relationship is interpretable but not fully predictable for a B1 learner who knows the words, so prior exposure is usually needed to understand the figurative sense.

Etymology

The idiom get back on the horse comes from the image of someone who falls off a horse and must climb back onto the horse to keep riding. That's why it means 'to try again' after a failure.