Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

whoops, there go my trousers

/ˈwʊps ðɛɚ ˈɡoʊ maɪ ˈtɹaʊzɚz/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.24 in modern English

Syllables: whoops, there go my trou-sers
IPA: /ˈwʊps ðɛɚ ˈɡoʊ maɪ ˈtɹaʊzɚz/

40

Scrabble Score

23

Letters

2

Syllables

12

Unique Chars

Meaning

phrase

Used to describe a genre of farcical theatre plays.

Example Sentences

"Four Rooms is the latest attempt to combine multiple directors' skits into one film. It is also an attempt to mix "whoops!-there-go-my-trousers" farce with the slick kitsch pop-art comedy."
"But what's this? A play about a Carry On film by Terry "Whoops, There Go My Trousers" Johnson, the man responsible for the National's revival of The London Cuckolds, an 18th-century version of Run For Your Wife?"
"The bolts have to be opened and closed in the right combination to avoid scenes worthy of a French farce. But I feel less a character in ‘Whoops! There go my trousers’, and more like something miserable by [Samuel] Beckett or [Franz] Kafka about the meaningless of life, and the fatuity of communication."
"Instead this relies on the supposedly comical misunderstandings that have been a feature of sitcoms since the 1950s. [...] The children are smart arses, the laughter is canned, the parents befuddled and every line delivered as if they're on stage starring in "Whoops, There Go My Trousers"."

Etymology

A reference to a gag in slapstick comedy theatre plays where a character’s trousers fall to the ground, exposing his underwear, to elicit laughs from the audience.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈwʊps ðɛɚ ˈɡoʊ maɪ ˈtɹaʊzɚz/
British English: /ˈʍʊps ðɛː ˈɡəʊ maɪ ˈtɹaʊzəz/

Questions

How do you pronounce whoops, there go my trousers?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈwʊps ðɛɚ ˈɡoʊ maɪ ˈtɹaʊzɚz/.
What does whoops, there go my trousers mean?: Used to describe a genre of farcical theatre plays.
Where does whoops, there go my trousers come from?: A reference to a gag in slapstick comedy theatre plays where a character’s trousers fall to the ground, exposing his underwear, to elicit laughs from the audience.

How to pronounce whoops, there go my trousers

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