to-weather-the-storm
/tə ˌweð.ə ðə stɔːm/ IELTSAcademic
idiom
To survive a difficult period without serious harm. It often suggests patience, strength, and steady effort until the problem passes.
- The company weathered the storm and stayed open.
- We can weather the storm if we work together.
- She weathered the storm after losing her job.
Adinary Nuance
Weather the storm is close to survive, endure, and get through, but it is more vivid and metaphorical. People use it for a hard period that will pass, like financial trouble or a crisis. It sounds stronger and more expressive than plain survive.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- vượt qua khó khăn
- Spanish
- superar la tormenta
- Chinese
- 渡过难关
- Japanese
- 苦境を乗り越える
- Korean
- 위기를 넘기다
Etymology
This idiom comes from sailing and sea travel. A ship that weathered a storm managed to stay safe through bad weather, and the phrase later came to mean surviving hard times.
Common phrases
weather the stormhelp someone weather the stormweather the financial stormweather the storm of criticism
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- Is weather the storm formal or informal?
- It is neutral and common in writing and speech.
- Can I use weather the storm in business English?
- Yes. It is common for business problems, losses, or market pressure.
- What is the difference between weather the storm and survive?
- Survive means stay alive or continue. Weather the storm adds the idea of passing through a hard time.
- Do people use this for emotional problems too?
- Yes. It can describe personal, family, or work problems.