out of one's depth
1
7.8
- idiom
- When she started her first year of university, she felt completely out of her depth in the advanced classes.
- feels out of his depth
- completely out of his depth
- clearly out of his depth
Examples
-
As this conversation continues, it is becoming increasingly apparent that you are out of your depth.
Blog text (26) -
Catherine Ruffin was out of her depth, floundering.
Fiction book (1993) -
I am completely out of my depth.
-
And that stuff is just out of my depth.
-
You are out of your depth.
-
If for any reason you feel out of your depth, you come and see me.
-
Ryan looked like a kid and was certainly totally out of his depth on foreign policy.
Blog text (11) -
Corinne felt out of her depth.
Fiction book (1998) -
The score came first, and Knoppers, a newly declared composition major, was out of his depth.
Blog text (27) -
Ferguson's looking increasingly out of his depth economically and out of touch politically.
Blog text (8)
Synonyms
51
4.2
Not knowing what to do or say
7
8.1
Too difficult for someone to understand
1
9.9
Not able to handle a task or situation because it is too difficult
1
6.5
Not skilled at a task or subject
1
8.2
To have to do something difficult without preparation
1
7.5
Not comfortable or confident in a new situation
Antonyms
How Competent
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'out of' with 'one's depth' where 'depth' can be interpreted as a degree of knowledge or competence, so the overall sense 'beyond someone's ability' is compositionally related to the parts. However this is a figurative/metaphorical use of 'depth' and the exact idiomatic collocation may not be fully predictable to a B1 learner without prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Out of one's depth comes from the image of being out beyond the depth you can stand in: when the water is too deep you cannot touch the bottom and you have trouble. So it means 'unable to deal' with a situation because it is 'too difficult' or unfamiliar.