The phrase "down the hatch" is often used to express the action of swallowing a drink or food. It is spelled with the letter "h" in the middle instead of "th" because it comes from a nautical term meaning to go below deck, where "hatch" refers to an opening in the ship's floor or roof. In IPA phonetic transcription, "down the hatch" is pronounced as /daʊn ðə hætʃ/, with the "th" sound pronounced as a voiced dental fricative /ð/ but replaced with the voiceless glottal fricative /h/ in the word "hatch".
"Down the hatch" is an informal phrase, primarily used in idiomatic expressions, that conveys the act of consuming or ingesting something, typically a beverage or food item. The phrase implies the action of swallowing, often done quickly and with eagerness. It is commonly used to describe the act of drinking an alcoholic beverage in one gulp or swallowing a pill or medication.
The phrase "down the hatch" originates from nautical jargon, where a hatch is an opening or door in the deck of a ship. Sailors would typically use hatches to access the below-deck compartments where provisions or cargo were stored. The "down the hatch" expression was then adopted to describe the act of consuming something, referencing the idea of items being lowered or passed through an opening, similar to how sailors would lower food or goods through the hatch.
The phrase is often employed colloquially to denote the completion of an action, particularly when celebrating a successful or effortless consumption, such as raising a glass for a toast. It can also be used humorously or metaphorically to describe other actions that involve consuming or accepting something, even when the context is not related to food or drinks. Overall, "down the hatch" is a figurative expression that accurately captures the sense of swallowing or absorbing something into the body.