to be a doormat
4
8.4
- idiom
- Informal
:
dejarse pisotear
- I endured many years of unhappiness when I was a doormat.
- mean you're a doormat
Listen, all of that does not mean being a doormat.
- Listen, all of that does not mean being a doormat.
- How do you know that that isn't just cope and you're not really being a doormat?
- Some of you are watching this and thinking that if I don't defend or explain, aren't I just being a doormat and letting them walk all over me?
Examples
-
Yo, I was a doormat, Nikki.
-
There is a difference between granting forgiveness and being a doormat.
Blog text (32) -
And she allows herself to be a doormat.
Blog text (14) -
Maybe on some level they think they deserve to be a doormat for whatever reasons.
Blog text (3) -
Aren't you tired of being a doormat?
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I am a doormat who can't say no, but somehow I feel you are responsible in some way.
Blog text (22) -
I wasn't being a doormat; the company was agreeing to pay me a reasonable wage and provide me with valuable business experience.
Blog text (11) -
You're a doormat.
Blog text (4) -
You deserve respect and should not be a doormat for anyone in your life.
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By letting people walk all over you, you're choosing to be a doormat instead of standing up for yourself.
Antonyms
How Assertive
8
4.6
39
3.9
31
5.1
- Informal
4
8.4
18
3.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
The figurative meaning 'to allow others to treat you badly' is directly motivated by the literal image of a doormat (something people walk on), so a learner who knows the words can plausibly infer the sense. However, this requires a metaphorical mapping from object → person and may not be immediately obvious to all B1 learners without prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Be a doormat comes from the small mat at a door, the doormat, that people step on or wipe their feet on. If someone 'is a doormat', others walk over them, so the phrase means 'to allow others to treat you badly or take advantage of you'.