out of one's element
8
7.5
- idiom
- At the formal dinner, she felt out of her element wearing casual clothes.
- feel out of one's element
- completely out of one's element
- totally out of one's element
Examples
-
I must say, I’m a bit out of my element.
-
Subject to so much attention, I felt even more out of my element.
Fiction book (1997) -
Anyone watching would have known immediately that he was out of his element.
Fiction book (1991) -
I totally and completely felt out of my element.
Blog text (2) -
When he has to interact with regular people, he is out of his element.
Blog text (8) -
"I felt out of my element; I didn't feel normal in there whatsoever.
Blog text (1) -
Although Ely seems talented, he might be a little out of his element if he were put in the action this quickly.
Blog text (33) -
When you're out of your element, you're forced to participate.
Blog text (14) -
When he started his new job in the tech industry, he realized he was completely out of his element.
-
Although he is a great athlete, playing chess makes him feel out of his element.
Synonyms
713
1.7
Causing physical pain or making you feel uneasy in a situation
63
3.5
Feeling uncomfortable because you do not belong in a place or situation
19
7.2
Feeling left out of a group or activity
8
7.8
Cannot deal with a new or difficult situation
6
5.1
Feeling confused or lost about your place among others
6
5.5
Feeling uncomfortable or nervous around other people
Feeling alone and not part of a group or society
Antonyms
How Comfortable
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the parts: 'element' (the setting where one feels most natural) combined with the prepositional phrase 'out of' yields being outside that natural setting, i.e. feeling awkward or uncomfortable. This is a regular compositional negation of the common phrase 'in one's element' and is cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Out of one's element comes from the image of being away from the place where you belong, like a fish pulled from the water. Being out of your element feels awkward and uncomfortable, so the phrase means 'not suited' or 'feeling uncomfortable'.