scratch the surface
IdiomsExample Sentences
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Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at Dutch bank ING, agreed, suggesting the US move would "only scratch the surface" of the supply disruption in the Persian Gulf.
From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026
In my short lifespan, I probably won’t do more than scratch the surface of what an orchestra can do, but I’m working on it.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2025
The 13 films below only scratch the surface of Corman’s huge filmography, but they do provide a glimpse into his ambition and his sensibility as both a director and a micro studio boss.
From New York Times • May 12, 2024
“We're really just starting to scratch the surface of what this could mean,” Little said.
From Salon • Jan. 5, 2024
Mateo says, which doesn’t really scratch the surface on who they are to me, but I let it slide because this is so wild even Mateo is tearing up for me.
From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera
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.
