can't do anything with

Idioms

Unable to cope with or manage someone or something. For example, I can't do anything with my hair, or My teenage daughter is very difficult—I can't do anything with her. This expression uses do in the sense of “deal with,” a usage dating from the early 1500s.

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.

You can’t do anything with the rest of your body because you have to involve your core to do that.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2024

"Bricked is the process of turning a computer into something that looks more like a brick - so you can't log in, you can't do anything with that computer."

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2023

“Life is so unpredictable and uncertain. We can’t do anything with this uncertainty.”

From New York Times • Oct. 8, 2022

“People can’t do anything with this miserable salary,” said Jean Wilkens Pierre.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 23, 2022

The barber said, “Sir, I can’t do anything with this until your hair’s been washed.”

From "The Journey of Little Charlie" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023