Idiom
reopen old wounds
Meaning
To cause the memory of past trauma to be recalled, resulting in renewed suffering.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“Talking about the past only reopens old wounds.”
“The reporter asked the politician about the scandal, which only served to reopen old wounds for the community.”
“By insisting on a public inquiry into the failed merger, the board members inadvertently reopened old wounds that had finally begun to heal after years of corporate instability.”
Examples
simple
“Talking about the past only reopens old wounds.”
contextual
“The reporter asked the politician about the scandal, which only served to reopen old wounds for the community.”
complex
“By insisting on a public inquiry into the failed merger, the board members inadvertently reopened old wounds that had finally begun to heal after years of corporate instability.”
Key words
Related idioms
- Updated