bitter pill
Americannoun
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Japanese considered the emperor to be divine, and a surrender was to admit his fallibility—a very bitter pill to swallow.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
For USC, it was an especially bitter pill to swallow, considering how well things had started.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 28, 2026
Liam Rosenior said Chelsea's failure to stay calm under pressure was a "bitter pill" as they blew a two-goal advantage in their 2-2 draw with Leeds on Tuesday.
From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026
It’s a bitter pill to swallow for Americans, especially younger generations that never have lived through a period of high inflation before.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 23, 2026
Given that Russia was at this point at the very vanguard of modernism it was a bitter pill to swallow, and understandably so.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
