A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

ride high • ride tall
ride high —(also: ride high in the saddle) 
1
. have a period of
success, popularity, etc.: The new government has been riding
high in the polls for several months now. 2. (of a boat) sit high
in the water: It was made of welded aluminum, stuffed with
plenty of lightweight Styrofoam to make the boat ride high
in the water. Cf.: ride low —(of a boat) sit low in the water:
Ballast water may also be carried so that a ship rides low
enough in the water to pass under bridges.
Note: 
The expression does not correlate in meaning with the
phrase ride high on the hog—(coll., also: live high on the hog )
live in a lavish or extravagant manner: Oh, yes, sometimes you
ride high on the hog, but most of the time, you settle for the
limits the world has placed on you.
ride tall —(also: walk tall) show dignity and self-respect:
Doesn’t matter if you eat corn mash and saddle your own
horse; you can still ride tall.
ride high in the saddle • ride the high horse
ride high in the saddle —(also: ride high) have a period of
success, popularity, etc.: Only months after facing the prospect
of a humiliating exit from politics, the president is riding high
in the saddle.
ride the high horse —be haughty or arrogant; act in a superior
way: Come, come, my dear fellow, do not try to ride the high
horse. You do not wish to show me your passport and I will
not insist.
– 283 –
ride high in the saddle

---

ride on the pig’s back • ride on the sheep’s back
ride on the pig’s back —(coll.) experience a period of success;
enjoy extreme good fortune: The self-employed are leaving
the country…. If the place is such a goldmine why do they
not stay and continue riding on the pig’s back?
ride on the sheep’s back —(Austral. sl.) used pertaining to the
success of the Australian sheep industry (a pun on the former
expression): After riding on the sheep’s back, will Australia end
up exporting our ideas and knowledge to the world?