stand on someone's shoulders
To build on the previous discoveries or creativity of someone.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us.”
“The young scientist acknowledged that her new discovery was only possible because she stood on the shoulders of her mentors.”
“By synthesizing centuries of philosophical inquiry, the author demonstrated that every great thinker ultimately stands on the shoulders of their predecessors.”
A generalisation of the phrase stand on the shoulders of giants. The expression contains no recorded dates or named entities in the source.
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another nail in someone's coffin
An event that increases the likelihood of or causes further failure.
- 02
answer someone's prayers
To be or do exactly what someone has been wishing or asking for.
- 03
answer to someone's prayers
Exactly what someone has been wishing or asking for.
- 04
apple of someone's eye
The object of somebody's affections; a person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers; a favorite, a loved one.
- 05
bane of someone's existence
Someone or something that poses a significant problem to someone.
- 06
bash someone's face in
To beat someone violently.
- 07
bash someone's head
To beat up someone violently.
- 08
be someone's to lose
To be anticipated to be won by someone.
Last updated August 10, 2026