Definitions

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective defunct; bankrupt; -- used mostly of commercial organizations; often used in the phrase go belly-up, i. e. to go bankrupt.
  • intransitive verb to approach (a counter) and stand in front of it; -- used mostly in the phrase belly up to the bar (i.e. to a counter in a saloon).

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective idiomatic Dead or defunct.
  • verb idiomatic To gather close to, or approach eagerly or assertively, as a bar for ordering alcoholic drinks.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective financially ruined

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  • Something is dying or failing, as in, "the relationship is going belly up."

    Or meaning approaching the bar or taking a seat at the bar, as a verb, as in "belly up to the bar".

    February 29, 2008