sell down the river

== English == === Etymology === Probably from the practice in the U.S., prior to the American Civil War, of trading in slaves who were transported via the Mississippi River: Mark Twain (1885), chapter 42, in Huckleberry Finn: “"[H]e ain't no slave. . . . Old Miss Watson died two months ago, and she was ashamed she ever was going to sell him down the river, and said so; and she set him free in her will."” Colin Woodard (2011), chapter 18, in American nations: === Pronunciation === === Verb === sell down the river (third-person singular simple present sells down the river, present participle selling down the river, simple past and past participle sold down the river) (transitive, idiomatic) To betray, especially in a manner which causes serious difficulty for the one betrayed. Synonyms: sell, sell the pass, sell out; see also Thesaurus:betray === References === “sell down the river”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.