candle in the wind
- idiom
- Informal
:
frágil como una vela al viento
- After the loss of her job, she was like a candle in the wind, uncertain and fragile.
Examples
-
During her illness, his mother appeared as a candle in the wind, struggling to stay strong.
-
The young prince seemed a candle in the wind amid the pressures of the court.
-
She felt like a candle in the wind during the tough times.
-
The children are like candles in the wind when faced with bullying.
-
After losing her job, she was like a candle in the wind, feeling fragile and vulnerable.
-
Amidst the harsh critics, the artist was a candle in the wind, struggling to keep her creativity alive.
-
During the difficult divorce, he felt like a candle in the wind, easily swayed by emotions.
Synonyms
Something very fragile that people or events can easily destroy
Antonyms
How Fragile
1
5.4
- Informal
188
3.8
1
4.4
581
4.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase literally evokes a candle exposed to wind, so the idea of being fragile or easily extinguished is directly inferable from the constituents 'candle' + 'in' + 'wind'. Although poetic, the metaphor is simple and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the words would very likely grasp the intended meaning.
Etymology
The noun candle in the wind comes from the image of a small candle in strong wind, its flame flickering and ready to be blown out. So it describes someone or something that is 'fragile' and 'easily affected' by hard times.