turning off the faucets

abruptly ending financial contributions; to financially ostracize; the stopping of monetary flow. Often used as a serious warning in a quid pro quo situation.

phrase; idiom

The first recorded usage of the viral phrase 'turning off the faucets' was in 2024 by Nevin Shapiro during a Momentum Podcast episode. “I said Coach, if that kid don’t see the field I’m turning off the faucets”, for the purpose of clearly and definitively communicating to Larry Coker, that all funding to the Miami Hurricane football program will immediately come to a halt if he didn’t start then freshman Devin “Hurricane” Hester for subsequent games of the 2003 season. It’s an effective way for one to convey the gravity and seriousness of a situation involving money in a not so subtle yet sophisticated manner.

"If you don't meet the deadline, I'm turning off the faucets on this project."
“If you don’t have a 3.5 GPA by the end of the semester I’m turning off the faucets!”
“Bro she broke up with you as soon as you turned the faucets off, she's a gold digger!”