packed in like sardines

Idioms

Extremely crowded, as in I could barely breathe—we were packed in like sardines. This term, alluding to how tightly sardines are packed in cans, has been applied to human crowding since the late 1800s.

Example Sentences

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packed in like sardines

Proper Fish is as popular as ever, with patrons packed in like sardines, and the staff assured me nothing has changed.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 8, 2023

"You're all packed in like sardines," she declares before launching into Kiss Them For Me.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2023

Inside suite 206, the reporters find themselves packed in like sardines.

From The Guardian ● Sep. 7, 2017

They are not comfortable: passengers are packed in like sardines.

From Economist ● Sep. 10, 2015

We fought our way into the shelter, which wasn’t much more than a box of strangers packed in like sardines.

From "Tasting the Sky" by Ibtisam Barakat

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