what's the matter

Idioms  

1. What is the difficulty or problem? What troubles or ails you? For example, You look upset—what's the matter? or Can you tell me what's the matter with my car? This idiom uses matter in the sense of “the essence of something,” in this case a problem. It was first recorded in 1469. Also see what's with.

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Example Sentences

He observes, for example, that “in one of the strange involutions of the modern age, we go onto the internet to see what’s the matter with the internet.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 2, 2025

"He was in the corner of the lounge with his hands on his head, crouching in the corner and just sobbing. He was repeating 'I don't know what's the matter with me'."

From BBC • Oct. 24, 2024

“That’s why we keep this stuff confidential, and why it makes perfect sense to do it even though everything in you screams, ‘I want to know what’s the matter with him.’”

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 24, 2024

And every time Padraic asks him what’s the matter, Colm only gets more upset and unwilling to engage.

From New York Times • Sep. 7, 2022

“You know perfectly well what’s the matter, Jesse Aarons.”

From "Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson