- under the table
- under the table1. Sl. intoxicated. •
Jed was under the table by midnight.
•By 3:00 in the morning, everyone was under the table.
2. Fig. secret; clandestine. (This is hyphenated before a nominal.) •It was strictly an under-the-table deal.
•The mayor made a few bucks under the table, too.
* * *See: UNDER THE COUNTER.
Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.