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Glite Dictionary
to take lying down

to take lying down

8 7.2
To accept unfair treatment or criticism without complaining
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : aceptar sin protestar
  • Romney sat across the table and took the criticism lying down.
  • going to take lying down
  • take things lying down

But we don't have to take this lying down on our beach towels.

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Examples

  • We can't take this lying down.

    Code 8 (2019)

  • She decided not to take lying down the criticism and confronted her manager about it.

  • No one should take it lying down.

    Blog text (20)

  • I'm not gonna take it lying down.

    Judgment (2001)

  • You can't take this lying down.

    Rock 'n' Roll High School (1979)

  • I vowed not to take it lying down, as my mother did.

    Blog text (31)

  • In my observation, American women are more likely to raise a fuss and not take it lying down.

    Blog text (7)

  • And I'm glad so far to see that Obama and Harry Reid aren't taking this lying down.

    Blog text (22)

  • After hearing the unjust comments, he promised not to take lying down it any longer.

  • The community refused to take lying down the unfair treatment and organized a protest.

Synonyms

to accept
vsto take lying down
∞ 3.5

To tolerate an unpleasant situation without complaining

is about enduring criticism or insult specifically rather than any unpleasant situation
to swallow
vsto take lying down
  • Informal
146 7.2

To accept something unpleasant without protest

focuses on enduring criticism and insults rather than mere disbelief
to take it on the chin
vsto take lying down
  • Informal
7 8.2

Accept failure or criticism bravely without complaining

is about enduring without protest not necessarily showing bravery
to take in stride
vsto take lying down
  • Informal
5 5.0

Deal with a problem calmly without getting upset

means enduring without protest rather than handling things calmly
to grin and bear it
vsto take lying down
  • Informal
5 6.8

To accept an unpleasant situation without complaining

shows endurance without protest rather than focusing on hiding feelings
to lump it
vsto take lying down
  • UK
3 8.8

Accept something unpleasant without complaining

is about enduring insult or unfair treatment rather than only decisions
to swallow the leek
vsto take lying down
  • Archaic
9.9

To accept something unpleasant during talks to avoid bigger problems

is general acceptance of insults rather than a negotiation tactic

Antonyms

to resist
311 2.2

Act against authority, rules or change

protest
  • Formal
76 2.8

A formal statement that says you strongly disagree, often given in writing

How Resistant

to fight back
188 3.3
to take lying down
8 7.2
to accept
∞ 3.5

Surface Forms

take lying down infinitive
taking lying down present participle
takes lying down third person singular
took lying down past
taken lying down past participle

Morphology

take + lying + down

The sense 'to accept or endure without protesting' is not fully predictable from the literal meanings of 'take' + 'lying' + 'down' because 'lying down' literally denotes a reclining posture; however, a B1 learner could plausibly infer a metaphorical link (a passive, submissive posture) to acceptance. Because the expression relies on a physical-to-social metaphor that is partially inferable but still idiomatic and requires mapping, it is best classified as semi-transparent.

Etymology

Take lying down may come from the image of someone knocked to the floor and lying down, so they cannot fight back. That's why it means 'to accept or endure something without protesting'.