to feel like Lazarus
- idiom
- "After overcoming his struggles, he knew he felt like Lazarus, grateful for a second chance."
Examples
-
"I feel like Lazarus back from the dead."
Fiction book (1995) -
"After a long recovery from her illness, she finally feels like Lazarus and is ready to return to work."
-
"Once he started exercising again, he felt like Lazarus, full of energy and enthusiasm for life."
Synonyms
Get better quickly after an illness, problem, or setback
To get back to normal after a problem
Become successful or active again after a long time away
To recover successfully after being ruined or failing completely
Antonyms
How Revived
Surface Forms
Morphology
The construction 'feel like X' is compositionally transparent, and if a learner knows that Lazarus was raised from the dead they can infer 'feel revitalized/revived' from combining 'feel' + 'like' + 'Lazarus'. However, the expression depends on specific cultural/biblical knowledge of the proper name, so it is not fully predictable for all learners without that background knowledge.
Etymology
Feel like Lazarus comes from a Bible story where Jesus brought a man named Lazarus back to life, so the strong image of someone rising from death helps you imagine a sudden return to health or strength. That's why saying feel like Lazarus means 'to feel revived or full of new energy' after illness or a hard time.