What's the word for hanging by a thread?

What's the word for hanging by a thread?

synonyms for hang by a thread compromise. defy. endanger. imperil. jeopardize.

What does by a thread mean?

phrase. If you say that something is hanging by a thread, you mean that it is in a very uncertain state and is unlikely to survive or succeed. The fragile peace was hanging by a thread as thousands of hardliners took to the streets.

Is hanging on by a thread a metaphor?

Be in a risky or unstable situation, as in His promotion was hanging by a thread, or With the lead actor sick, the success of our play hung by a hair. This expression, already proverbial in the early 1500s, alludes to Damocles, who vexed King Dionysius with constant flattery.

Where does the saying hanging by a thread come from?

The term hanging by a thread, derives from the banquet that King Dionysius held for Damocles, a courtier of ancient Syracuse. King Dionysius was beginning to become annoyed with Damocles' constant flattery of his king. He invited him to a banquet, where Damocles was seated under a sword suspended by a single hair.

What is the synonyms of hanging?

In this page you can discover 60 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for hanging, like: swaying, attaching, flopping, fastening, hanging, depending, appending, flapping, waving, killing and helping.

What is the meaning of hangdog expression?

adjective. shamefaced; guilty: He sneaked out of the room with a hangdog expression. browbeaten; defeated; intimidated: He always went about with a hangdog look. suitable to a degraded or contemptible person; sneaky; furtive.

What does im hanging on by a thread mean?

Definition of hang by a thread : to be in a very dangerous situation or state : to be very close to death, failure, etc. The patient's life was hanging by a thread.

When you are hanging on by a thread make sure it is the hem of his garment?

“When you're hanging on by a thread, make sure it's the Hem of His Garment.” Do you know how powerful that statement is? Life can be cruel, life can be stressful, life throws us all sorts of curveballs, but if we just hang on to the hem of his garment, everything's gonna be okay.

How do you use thread hanging in a sentence?

depend on a small thing or be at risk.

1. His life hung by a thread.
2. The player's career is hanging by a thread after this latest injury to his knee.
3. The mayor's political future has been hanging by a thread since the fraud scandal.
4. He is still in hospital, his life hanging by a thread.

Was left hanging?

COMMON If a question or remark is left hanging in the air, it is not answered or discussed. The presenter made intelligent points but never challenged anybody, so we were left with a lot of questions hanging in the air.

What does it mean "hanging by a thread"?

• hang by a thread. 1. Literally, to be attached only by single thread, strand, or something similar. If that button is only hanging by a thread, you're bound to lose it during the course of the day. 2. To be perilously close to failing, dying, or resulting in a bad outcome.

What does hang by a thread mean?

• hang by a thread. 1. If something hangs by a thread, it is very likely to fail, although it has not failed yet. It's clear that the ceasefire is hanging by a thread. England's World Cup hopes hang by a thread and they must now rely on the results of the others in their group going their way.

What is another word for hanging by a thread?

• Synonyms for hang by a thread include risk, endanger, hazard, imperil, jeopardise, jeopardize, venture, gamble, dare and compromise. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com!

What is the meaning of the idiom hangs by a thread?

• "hang by a thread" in English. › If a serious situation hangs by a thread, it means that even a slight change can decide what will happen and that a bad result such as death, failure, etc. is likely: The mayor's political future has been hanging by a thread since the fraud scandal.