in the lurch
8
8.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
abandonado
- Then they tanked, leaving shareholders in the lurch.
- left in the lurch
- just in the lurch
Examples
-
The Greed Is Good mentality has cut too many corners and left people, including President Obama's mother, in the lurch.
Blog text (2) -
When the team leader resigned suddenly, the project was left in the lurch, and no one knew what to do next.
-
Sorry to leave you in the lurch, but I know you can handle things.
Fiction book (2002) -
"She left you in the lurch, huh?" the American stated.
Fiction book (1998) -
I'd like to give some additional background on pro users' general fear that Apple might leave them in the lurch.
Blog text (27) -
Do our people intend to leave the continent in the lurch?
Blog text (19) -
He leaves me in the lurch.
Academic text (1990) -
"Charlotte," I said, "you can't just leave him in the lurch."
Fiction book (2002) -
Pamela had panicked at the last minute, leaving not only Stark, but Right Touch, in the lurch.
Fiction book (1995) -
Unfortunately, I don't have any solutions, but as a web community, we need to think about this so that rights are not trampled upon and site owners are not left in the lurch.
Blog text (19)
Synonyms
98
6.5
A difficult situation that is hard to get out of
54
7.0
In a risky position without support from others
15
6.3
Someone has no help or basic things in a difficult situation
3
4.0
Unable to leave a place because no help or transport is available
2
7.4
A situation of very great trouble and urgent need with no easy way out
1
6.8
Leave people alone without help, often in danger, so events decide what happens to them
1
9.9
To be in a difficult situation with no way out
1
7.8
Put suddenly into a difficult situation without preparation or help
Antonyms
How Supported
Surface Forms
Morphology
The idiomatic meaning 'left in an awkward or difficult situation' is not predictably built from the literal meanings of 'in' + 'the' + 'lurch'—'lurch' denotes an unsteady movement, which does not transparently map onto abandonment or lack of support. Because the semantic shift is idiomatic and not a standard compositional pattern, a B1 learner who only knows the constituent words would most likely not infer the expression's meaning.
Etymology
The idiom in the lurch may come from an old board game called lurch. In that game, a player who fell far behind was left alone and lost, so the phrase came to mean 'left without help' or 'in a difficult situation'.