Idiom: wake up and smell the coffee

Do you like coffee in the morning? Or evening? Or perhaps you're a tea lover. Well, coffee is something that many people around the world drink when they first wake up in the morning.

For many people, coffee is not just about the taste. Many people wake up tired and groggy in the morning and smelling coffee brewing starts of process of truly waking up and being alert. It's from this idea that the idiom "wake up and smell the coffee" causes someone to be more alert that we get the meaning of this idiom.

Meaning

Idiom:  wake up and smell the coffee

Definition: To become serious about something.

The idea is that a person is not being serious or paying attention to something and the phrase is often used as a command to others to try to get them to take notice of something and be more serious about the issue.

Examples

You are late again. Wake up and smell the coffee or you might not have a job here much longer.

I refused to wake up and smell the coffee when I noticed messages on my girlfriend's phone from her ex-boyfriend.

Finally, I woke up and smelled the coffee after I had a heart attack. Now, I eat right and exercise daily.

My sister is stealing money from my father but I doubt he'll ever wake up and smell the coffee because he thinks she's an angel.

40 out of 100 in math? Wake up and smell the coffee or you won't graduate in June.

I know I need to wake up and smell the coffee. My best friend is not behaving like a good friend but I don't want to have a confrontation.

Look at your credit card bill. Wake up and smell the coffee before you have a financial crisis!

It took my husband a long time to wake up and smell the coffee about his drinking.