up against a/the wall
idiom
informal
: in a very bad position or situation
The team was up against a wall in the first half of the game.
Examples of up against a/the wall in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Put your foot up against the wall, with heel on the ground, and your toes facing upward.
—
Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2025
Video taken by Hamas on October 7 and later released by the women’s families showed the female soldiers being lined up against a wall by men with rifles.
—Bianna Golodryga, CNN, 13 Feb. 2025
But there was another box, still flat and unpacked, propped up against a wall in the living room.
—Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2025
This movement is battle hardened because we were put up against the wall in 2021.
—Steve Inskeep, NPR, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for up against a/the wall
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Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2025
Video taken by Hamas on October 7 and later released by the women’s families showed the female soldiers being lined up against a wall by men with rifles.
—Bianna Golodryga, CNN, 13 Feb. 2025
But there was another box, still flat and unpacked, propped up against a wall in the living room.
—Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2025
This movement is battle hardened because we were put up against the wall in 2021.
—Steve Inskeep, NPR, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for up against a/the wall
Cite this Entry
“Up against a/the wall.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/up%20against%20a%2Fthe%20wall. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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