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Glite Dictionary
to like it or lump it

to like it or lump it

1 8.6
Tell someone to accept a situation they cannot change
  • idiom
  • UK
translation icon : te guste o no
  • They'd given her this face and body, and she'd have to like it or lump it.

Examples

  • That is how we rolled, like it or lump it.

    Blog text (18)

  • Alright, like it or lump it, here is my deal.

    Ballerina (2016)

  • The rules of free trade will just have to be respected, like it or lump it, United States.

    Academic text (2000)

  • Like it or lump it, they all just had to get along.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • That means, like it or lump it, I'm going to have to do it without nuclear.

    Blog text (9)

  • That way you can enjoy a nice meal, and snooty toots that don't think children should be allowed to breathe their air (but will expect them to wipe their bums in the nursing home) can like it or lump it!

    Blog text (4)

  • You can disagree with the decision, but like it or lump it, the meeting is on Monday.

  • He didn’t get the promotion he wanted, so he has to accept his current role, like it or lump it.

  • The deadline is set, and like it or lump it, everyone must submit their reports by Friday.

Synonyms

to accept
vsto like it or lump it
∞ 3.5

To tolerate an unpleasant situation without complaining

adds a tone that acceptance is required, not merely chosen
to live with
vsto like it or lump it
563 3.9

To accept something unpleasant that you cannot change

is an immediate instruction to accept now rather than long-term toleration
to let it be
vsto like it or lump it
33 4.1

Accept a situation without trying to change it

insists on acceptance because change is impossible rather than advising noninterference
to grin and bear it
vsto like it or lump it
  • Informal
5 6.8

To accept an unpleasant situation without complaining

presses acceptance as unavoidable rather than as personal endurance
to lump it
vsto like it or lump it
  • UK
3 8.8

Accept something unpleasant without complaining

demands that same acceptance because the situation cannot be changed
it is what it is
vsto like it or lump it
  • Informal
2 7.4

Saying you accept a situation you cannot change

frames acceptance as an imposed necessity rather than a neutral fact
it can't be helped
vsto like it or lump it
1 6.7

To accept a situation you cannot change

is more forceful, telling someone to accept rather than merely noting fate
love it or lump it
vsto like it or lump it
  • UK
8.8

Accept something as it is even if you do not like it

uses a milder positive verb but requires the same acceptance
to take the rough with the smooth
vsto like it or lump it
  • Informal
7.7

Accept the good and bad parts of a situation

focuses only on accepting a present unchangeable problem rather than both sides

Antonyms

to reject
839 1.9

Refuse to accept someone or something

Surface Forms

like it or lump it infinitive

Morphology

like + it + or + lump + it

The overall sense 'accept it whether you like it or not' is idiomatic: the verb 'lump' in 'lump it' means 'put up with/accept' rather than its more basic sense 'to form a lump' or 'to put things together', so the meaning cannot be straightforwardly derived from the individual words. This fixed, formulaic contrast ('like it or lump it') is not transparently compositional or reliably predictable for an average B1 learner who only knows the constituents.

Etymology

The idiom like it or lump it may come from an old use of 'lump' meaning 'to accept something unpleasant'. Picture someone offered a bitter lump of food or medicine: they can like it or they must lump it and put up with it. That's why the phrase means 'accept a situation as it is', whether you want it or not.