wake up and smell the coffee

== English == === Etymology === Probably a humorous elaboration of wake up (“to become more aware of a real-life situation; to concentrate on the matter in hand”), alluding to the fact that coffee is often consumed at breakfast time after waking up in the morning. The term was popularized by the American writer Esther Pauline “Eppie” Lederer (1918–2002), who used the pen name Ann Landers, in the syndicated newspaper advice column Ask Ann Landers. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈweɪk ʌp n̩ ˈsmɛl ðə ˈkɒfi/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈweɪk ˌʌp n̩ ˈsmɛl ðə ˈkɔfi/ Rhymes: -ɒfi (one pronunciation) Hyphenation: wake up and smell the cof‧fee === Verb === wake up and smell the coffee (third-person singular simple present wakes up and smells the coffee, present participle waking up and smelling the coffee, simple past woke up and smelled the coffee or woke up and smelt the coffee, past participle woken up and smelled the coffee or woken up and smelt the coffee) (idiomatic, US, Philippines, informal) Often in the infinitive or imperative: to face reality and stop deluding oneself. Synonyms: open one's eyes, take the hint, (rare) wake up and smell the ashes, wake up and smell the decaf, wake up and smell the roses ==== Translations ==== === References === === Further reading === Pascal Tréguer (4 April 2019), “Meaning and Early Instances of ‘To Wake Up and Smell the Coffee’”, in Word Histories‎[1], archived from the original on 7 January 2021.