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Glite Dictionary
to put some meat on someone's bones

to put some meat on someone's bones

9.1
To gain weight and become healthier after being thin or sick
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : engordar
  • The doctor advised him to gain some weight and put some meat on his bones for better health.

Examples

  • After recovering from her illness, she began eating more healthy food to put some meat on her bones.

  • "Your wife needs to put some meat on her bones."

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Gonna put some meat on her bones this trip I think she's too thin, don't you?

    Blame It on Rio (1984)

  • He started a workout routine to help put some meat on his bones and build muscle.

Synonyms

to put on
vsto put some meat on someone's bones
58 2.2

To gain weight and become heavier

focuses on gaining healthy weight after thinness or illness
to fatten
vsto put some meat on someone's bones
45 2.2

To make an animal gain weight and a sauce taste richer by giving more or richer food

emphasizes gaining weight for health after illness rather than just adding fat
to bulk
vsto put some meat on someone's bones
  • Jargon
15 5.6

To gain muscle and weight by exercising and eating more

means gaining weight for health recovery rather than mainly adding muscle
to fatten up
vsto put some meat on someone's bones
10 2.3

To give extra food so a person or animal gains weight

highlights recovery and health improvement after being thin or sick
to fatten out
vsto put some meat on someone's bones
4.9

To make an animal or person gain weight

focuses on steady healthy weight gain after illness not just thickening

Antonyms

to lose fat
4 3.0

To reduce the fat on your body by eating less and exercising

How Healthy

to bulk
  • Jargon
15 5.6
to put some meat on someone's bones
  • Informal
9.1
to fill out
14 2.8

Surface Forms

put some meat on someone's bones infinitive
put some meat on someone's bones past
put some meat on someone's bones past participle
putting some meat on someone's bones present participle
puts some meat on someone's bones third person singular

Morphology

put + some + meat + on + someone's + bone

The expression evokes the concrete image of placing flesh onto bones, so a learner who knows 'put', 'meat', 'on' and 'bones' can readily infer the idea of adding weight or becoming more healthy. This is a straightforward, concrete metaphor (flesh replacing thinness) that is cross-linguistically plausible, so the meaning is immediately derivable from the parts.

Etymology

The phrase put some meat on someone's bones comes from the clear image of a very thin person whose bones show and where adding meat would make them look fuller and healthier. So the phrase means 'to gain weight' or 'be healthier'.