Phrase guide

wet one's pants

verb · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

verb

Meaning 1

To wet oneself, to urinate in one's clothes while wearing them.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

Examples

  • If you keep on refusing to excuse anyone for a bathroom break, you're going to force someone to wet their pants. Don't go overboard with it.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To laugh uncontrollably.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, informal, vulgar

Examples

  • Pretty much the whole night at the comedy club was hilarious, but that encore by Taylor Tomlinson had me wetting my pants.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To be afraid; especially, to be extremely afraid.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, informal, vulgar

Examples

  • He just about wet his pants when he found out how many accounts receivable were still outstanding.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: crap one's pants

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

The senses referring to laughing and being afraid are extensions from the literal (urination) sense; both involve an element of variably literal or figurative nature: they are generally figurative, but if one laughs hard enough or gets frightened badly enough, the wetting may sometimes happen literally.