english
1
general::
Phrase(s): up a tree 1. confused; without an answer to a problem; in difficulty. • This whole business has me up a tree. • I’m up a tree, and I need some help. 2. intoxicated. • Only two glasses of booze and he was up a tree for sure. • My buddy here is up a tree and needs a place to crash for the night.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
In a difficult situation, as in They found the drugs in his suitcase, so he was up a tree. This expression alludes to an animal, such as a raccoon or squirrel, that climbs a tree for refuge from attackers, which then surround the tree so it cannot come down. [Colloquial; early 1800s]
American Heritage Idioms