ENGLISH
REFERENCE

feel the pinch

idiom
Meaning

To suffer a hardship, especially significant financial pressure.


Examples
SIMPLE

Many families feel the pinch when food prices rise.

CONTEXTUAL

With the cost of rent increasing so quickly, many young professionals are starting to feel the pinch.

COMPLEX

As the economic recession deepened, even the most successful small businesses began to feel the pinch of reduced consumer spending.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    feel around

    To gather information sneakily; to seek out information without revealing that one is actively searching for it.

  2. 02

    feel for

    To experience sympathy for, to sympathise with.

  3. 03

    feel free

    To feel able without giving offense.

  4. 04

    feel one's way

    To do by guesswork, erring on the side of caution.

  5. 05

    feel out

    To attempt to ascertain a person's point of view, or the nature of a situation, by cautious and subtle means.

  6. 06

    feel someone's collar

    To arrest someone.

  7. 07

    feel up

    To grope someone, especially someone's breasts, in a sexual manner.

  8. 08

    half-inch

    [Cockney slang]pinch

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