fit to be tied
2
8.6
- idiom
- Informal
:
furioso
- After waiting for hours and receiving no answer, she was fit to be tied.
Examples
-
Ubri was fit to be tied.
Fiction book (1993) -
Sheena was fit to be tied.
Fiction book (1994) -
I heard Jackson was fit to be tied.
Fiction book (1994) -
I admit I was fit to be tied.
Blog text (10) -
I bet Stix is fit to be tied.
-
Boy wasn't that lady ever fit to be tied.
-
He's fit to be tied.
-
"Mrs. Figg is fit to be tied!
Fiction book (1998) -
Luvenia was fit to be tied.
Fiction book (1999) -
Jonah was fit to be tied.
Fiction book (1994)
Synonyms
1
9.8
Very angry or upset
Feeling very angry and showing it
Feeling very angry and upset
Feeling very angry and upset
Antonyms
How Angry
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'extremely angry' cannot be derived from the literal senses of 'fit' (ready/disposed) and 'tied' (fastened); a literal reading suggests physical binding rather than an emotional state. This is a fixed idiomatic phrase whose sense has shifted and is not predictable from its parts, so a B1 learner knowing only the constituents would likely not infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
The idiom fit to be tied may come from the image of someone having a strong fit of anger and needing to be tied down so they cannot move. So the phrase means 'extremely angry' or very upset, as if someone might need to be held back.