Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to carry some baggage

to carry some baggage

7.8
Have problems from the past that still affect your feelings or actions
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : cargar con problemas emocionales
  • He admitted that he carried some baggage from his troubled childhood.

Examples

  • He carries some baggage from his childhood.

  • Many people carry some baggage into new jobs after difficult experiences at their previous workplaces.

  • She tries to hide it, but she clearly carries some baggage from her last relationship.

  • Don't carry some baggage into your new relationship!

  • After ending her last relationship, she realized she still felt like she needed to carry some baggage from the past.

  • It's common for people to carry some baggage that influences their reactions in new situations.

  • He tried to let go of his anger, but he couldn't help but carry some baggage from old grievances.

Synonyms

to carry
vsto carry some baggage
302 2.1

Have a risk or responsibility connected to something

is specifically about unresolved emotional issues that still affect behavior

Antonyms

to let go
381 3.7

To stop worrying about something and relax

How Burdened

burdened
3.8
haunting
35 6.0
to carry some baggage
  • Informal
7.8
unaffected
3 3.9

Surface Forms

carry some baggage infinitive
carried some baggage past
carried some baggage past participle
carrying some baggage present participle
carries some baggage third person singular

Morphology

carry + some + baggage

The phrase maps literally to 'carry' + 'baggage' (luggage), and the figurative sense (past emotional burdens) is a metaphorical extension of those constituents rather than a completely new meaning. Because the emotional sense is inferable from the physical image for some learners but not fully predictable without exposure or contextual clues, this is best classified as semi-transparent.

Etymology

Carry some baggage uses the image of a person carrying heavy baggage like suitcases. That image shows how past problems can 'weigh you down' and change how you act, so the phrase means 'past problems that still affect you'.