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a fly in the ointment

a fly in the oint·ment
A a

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [ey flahy in stressed th ee oint-muh nt]
    • /eɪ flaɪ ɪn stressed ði ˈɔɪnt mənt/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [ey flahy in stressed th ee oint-muh nt]
    • /eɪ flaɪ ɪn stressed ði ˈɔɪnt mənt/

Definition of a fly in the ointment words

  • phrase a fly in the ointment If you describe someone or something as a fly in the ointment, you think they spoil a situation and prevent it being as successful as you had hoped. 3
Just one definition for a fly in the ointment

Information block about the term

Parts of speech for A fly in the ointment

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Full grammatical hierarchy of A fly in the ointment

a fly in the ointment popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 94% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

a fly in the ointment usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

See also

Matching words

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