# down the banks

> English word · Noun · IPA /daʊn d̪ə bæŋks/

## Definitions
1. A severe criticism, scolding, reprimand, or punishment.

## Etymology
Unknown. Probably of Irish origin.
five conjectural etymologies
* Notes & Queries, 3rd series, volume 1 (8 March 1862), page 189 posits a connection with "down the khud", supposedly used of a person falling down a precipice in the Himalayas.
* Cassell's Dictionary of Slang (1998) suggests falling off the raised bank of a bog into muddy water.
* Bernard Share (Slanguage, 1997) suggests a link to "The Banks of my own Lovely Lee", a Cork anthem nicknamed "De Banks".
See also:
* Laurence Urdang, Walter W. Hunsinger, Nancy LaRoche, Picturesque expressions: a thematic dictionary (1985, →ISBN, page 571
* The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (2006, →ISBN, volume 1 A–I, page 646

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/down-the-banks