paint the town red

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US slang. Earliest known use 1884. Various theories include the red from bonfires, the heat from over-stoked paddle-wheel boilers, and town demarcation lines in the Wild West. A British claim attributing it to the actions of the Third Marquess of Waterford predates the first known use by decades.

20 source translations are retained for this English entry.

• Chinese Mandarin: 狂欢作乐 (kuánghuān zuò yuè) — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Danish: male byen rød — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Dutch: de bloemetjes buiten zetten — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Finnish: juhlia railakkaasti — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• German: die Sau rauslassen — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Hungarian: kirúg a hámból — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Hungarian: csap egy görbe estét — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Italian: folleggiare — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Italian: spassarsela — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Italian: pazziare — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Italian: matteggiare — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Italian: darsi alla pazza gioia — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Norwegian Bokmål: male byen rød — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Polish: balangować — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Portuguese: soltar a franga — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Russian: зада́ть жа́ру (zadátʹ žáru) — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Spanish: correrse una juerga — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Spanish: ir de parranda — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Spanish: irse de picos pardos — party in a rowdy, wild manner
• Vietnamese: đi bão — party in a rowdy, wild manner