turn on the waterworks

turn on the waterworks (third-person singular simple present turns on the waterworks, present participle turning on the waterworks, simple past and past participle turned on the waterworks)

1. (dated, informal, figuratively) To start crying, especially in a way that the speaker finds irritating.

• crocodile tear

• “turn on the waterworks” in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Longman.
• “turn on the waterworks” (US) / “turn on the waterworks” (UK) in Macmillan English Dictionary.
• “turn on the waterworks”, in Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, 1999–present.
• “turn on the waterworks”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.