hell to pay
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For Bondi, a woman who just hours ago was touting the president’s work ethic, there was hell to pay.
From Slate • Mar. 8, 2025
He did not identify the Kremlin faction but said that it continued its attempts to sow discord, it would have "hell to pay".
From Reuters • Jun. 3, 2023
Harvey responded, “It’s going to be a lot of hell to pay at your house.”
From Seattle Times • Mar. 24, 2023
For the Astros, there would be hell to pay.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2020
They were appropriately amazed, though they did tell me in plain terms that next time I would leave a note for them or there would be hell to pay.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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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.