Synonyms

get the worst of it

Idioms

Also, have the worst of it. Be defeated, experience a disadvantage, or suffer the most harm. For example, In any argument Joe usually gets the worst of it, or If we play the last three games as scheduled, our team is bound to have the worst of it, or The car got the worst of it, and no one was hurt. These phrases survive many older ones (such as go to the worst and come by the worst) in which worst is used in the sense of “defeat,” a usage dating from about 1500. Also see get the better (best) of.

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.

get the worst of it

Consumers, he adds, "get the worst of it".

From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026

Matt Jones’s elbow had turned numb by the time the game ended, and he didn’t even get the worst of it.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 9, 2016

In the paragraphs that follow, the recipient’s alleged lovers get the worst of it.

From New York Times ● Nov. 11, 2014

"We can't just pinpoint who's going to get the worst of it."

From Scientific American ● Oct. 29, 2012

"Well, he 's pretty sure to get the worst of it," muttered he.

From The Bramleighs of Bishop's Folly by Charles James Lever

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