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shoe is on the other foot, the

shoe is on the other foot, the idiom
The circumstances have reversed, the participants have changed places, as in I was one of his research assistants, subject to his orders, but now that I'm his department head the shoe is on the other foot. This metaphoric term first appeared in the mid-1800s as the boot is on the other leg. Literally wearing the right shoe on the left foot would be quite uncomfortable, and this notion is implied in this idiom, which suggests that changing places is not equally beneficial to both parties.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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