on earth
Idioms-
Also, in creation ; in the world . Ever, anywhere, of all possible things. These phrases are all used for emphasis in questions or, less often, in a negative context. For example, What on earth is he doing with a spade? or Where in creation did that child go? or How in the world do you expect me to carry all those bags? [Late 1700s]
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like nothing on earth . Incomparable. For example, That perfume smells like nothing on earth , or Her new hair color is like nothing on earth . [c. 1900]
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.
"Which other world champion on my level - a high-level athlete on earth - would do a performance in front of 1,500 in Pattaya?"
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
“There’s not even a billing code or a system for preventive healthcare. Doctors, scientists and technologists lost control. Healthcare is the only system on earth where both sides of the marketplace are wildly unhappy.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
There are fluorescent lights, sweated-out windows, pizzas stacked like evidence, and the unshakable feeling that every other shopper is experiencing their first day on earth while glitching gently in front of the popsicles.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Apart from the dangerously low overnight temperatures, faraway Omsk seemed like the safest place on earth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
The people who made their homes within his limits came from some of the hardest, meanest places on earth.
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
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.
