the scheme of things
noun phrase
: the general way that things are organized and relate to each other
Everyone has their role to play in the overall scheme of things.
Our problems aren't really that important in the grand scheme of things.
Examples of the scheme of things in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In the scheme of things, the loss in the conference tournament means little, though the Big East’s event carries more emotional weight than others.
—
Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2025
Progress on those issues now feels miniscule in the scheme of things.
—Justin Worland/houston, TIME, 14 Mar. 2025
The 116 units are only 3% of San Diego’s affordable housing produced over those three years — not a big contributor in the scheme of things.
—Danna Givot, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
In the scheme of things, skinny jeans could be seen as less forgiving in general than slightly looser silhouettes such as straight jeans, which are looser at the calf and ankle.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 24 Jan. 2025
Last year, the Supreme Court upheld a different and, in the scheme of things, relatively minor provision of the law in United States v. Rahimi.
—Adam Liptak, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2025
That’s low in the scheme of things, but regulation these days can be increasingly laundered through subsidy and spending programs, procurement and contracting, public-private partnerships, numerous kinds of guidance documents and plain old threats.
—Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., Forbes, 31 Dec. 2024
Perhaps insignificant in the scheme of things, but the event being staged in the UAE is underwhelming.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes, 24 Dec. 2024
Still, a thousand light years is pretty close by in the scheme of things.
—Janna Levin, Quanta Magazine, 19 Dec. 2024
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Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2025
Progress on those issues now feels miniscule in the scheme of things.
—Justin Worland/houston, TIME, 14 Mar. 2025
The 116 units are only 3% of San Diego’s affordable housing produced over those three years — not a big contributor in the scheme of things.
—Danna Givot, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
In the scheme of things, skinny jeans could be seen as less forgiving in general than slightly looser silhouettes such as straight jeans, which are looser at the calf and ankle.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 24 Jan. 2025
Last year, the Supreme Court upheld a different and, in the scheme of things, relatively minor provision of the law in United States v. Rahimi.
—Adam Liptak, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2025
That’s low in the scheme of things, but regulation these days can be increasingly laundered through subsidy and spending programs, procurement and contracting, public-private partnerships, numerous kinds of guidance documents and plain old threats.
—Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., Forbes, 31 Dec. 2024
Perhaps insignificant in the scheme of things, but the event being staged in the UAE is underwhelming.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes, 24 Dec. 2024
Still, a thousand light years is pretty close by in the scheme of things.
—Janna Levin, Quanta Magazine, 19 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“The scheme of things.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20scheme%20of%20things. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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