at the mercy of

Idioms  

1. Also, at someone's mercy . Subject to the power of, helpless against, as in The captured rebels were at the mercy of the army commander . [Late 1500s]

2. Without any protection against, as in On top of Mount Washington we were at the mercy of the elements . [Late 1600s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

at the mercy of

Mr. Sullivan’s mission is to remind Alaska—a state almost wholly at the mercy of federal policy—that things could be worse.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Tupper’s Mick, at the mercy of his brittle fetishes, may be the most believable of this quartet.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

“You’re kind of at the mercy of the customer-service department,” said Jackie Mondelli, chief marketing officer at Squaremouth, a travel-insurance comparison business.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026

"Reliance on a small number of US-based providers represents a clear vulnerability" which could leave public services "at the mercy of foreign actors," the report from parliament's Science, Innovation and Technology Committee said.

From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026

People in Paleolithic societies had led the unsettled life of the hunter and food gatherer, reaping where nature sowed and thus at the mercy of forces that they could neither understand nor control.

From "History of Art, Volume 1" by H.W. Janson

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