embarrassment of riches

Idioms  

1. An overabundance of something, too much of a good thing, as in All four of them have their own cars but there's no room in the driveway—an embarrassment of riches. This term originated in 1738 as John Ozell's translation of a French play, L'Embarras des richesses (1726).

---

Example Sentences

The game is an embarrassment of riches for trivia buffs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

And when it comes to rock ‘n’ roll bona fides, Wings holds an embarrassment of riches.

From Salon • Nov. 3, 2025

He opted for joining Paris St-Germain but he couldn't quite break through amid the club's embarrassment of riches in the attacking department.

From BBC • Jul. 17, 2025

A greatest-hits revue, devised by producer Cameron Mackintosh, the celebratory show is a true embarrassment of riches.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2025

Part of what he was wrestling with was, in fact, good news—an embarrassment of riches.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• plethora