ditch v. especially in the phrase ditch in line, to unfairly take a place in front of others (in a line); to cut or butt (in line); to jump a queue. Editorial Note: Also infrequently given as dish. This term is particularly common in Ohio. Political commentator and Ohioan John Kasich frequently uses the term in the discussion of immigration. Doug Wilson has speculated that this form of ditch is a variant of dish defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as “to ‘do for’, defeat completely, ruin; to cheat, circumvent,” which dates to at least as early as 1798. However, this and other theories are unproven. Thanks to Chris Waigl for bring this word to my attention and Steve Hartman Keiser for first mentioning it on the American Dialect Society email list. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Jim in Columbia, South Carolina, has noticed sportscasters’ use of the phrase on the season with reference to a period of time. This construction shows up in the sports pages as early as the 1880s, first referring to a team’s revenue and...
The slang phrase someone ate and left no crumbs means the person did something really well. In a previous call, a listener who works in theater noted the use of ate to mean “did something well,” as in they really ate that haircut! This...