wear the trousers

/wˈeə ðə tɹˈaʊsəz/

/wˈɛɹ ðə tɹˈaʊsɚz/

to wear the trousers

to be the one who assumes the full control of a relationship

Examples

1. She may give the impression that she wears the trousers but it's actually Tim who makes all the big decisions.

2. So who's wearing the trousers in the Geoff/Jack relationship that's goin' on right now?

3. If you 'wear the trousers' in a relationship, it means you 'have the control and make the decisions for both people'.

4. Then we had wear the trousers.