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View synonyms for life of Riley

life of Riley

noun

, Informal.
  1. a carefree, comfortable, and thoroughly enjoyable way of living:

    Since winning the lottery, he's led the life of Riley.



life of Riley

  1. A life of luxury: “Sheila found herself living the life of Riley after she won the lottery.” The expression comes from a popular song of the 1880s, “Is That Mr. Reilly?”, in which the title character describes what he would do if he suddenly became wealthy.


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Word History and Origins

Origin of life of Riley1

First recorded in 1920–25; perhaps after the Reilly mentioned in various songs popular around 1900, as “The Best of the House Is None Too Good for Reilly”
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Idioms and Phrases

Also, life of Reilly . An easy life, as in Peter had enough money to take off the rest of the year and live the life of Riley . This phrase originated in a popular song of the 1880s, “Is That Mr. Reilly?” by Pat Rooney, which described what its hero would do if he suddenly came into a fortune.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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