Meaning of force someone's back to the wall | Babel Free

Definitions

To put someone under a lot of pressure; to put someone in a very difficult situation.

Examples

“You are forcing our backs to the wall, Mr. President. The time is not far off when, living for God’s reign on earth, we shall have to stand against you.”

“He didn’t want to do it this way, but she’d forced his back to the wall.”

“It was unlikely that “the masses” would respond to this, unless rising prices forced their backs to the wall – or unless they were incited!”

“We did not do that because the opposition was forcing our backs to the wall. We did that because we want to govern well.”

“There are those who believe that the truth about the humanity emerges only when you subject people to extreme pressure. Force their backs to the wall, confront them (for example) in some room full of light with what terrifies them most in the world, and they will reveal themselves for what they are. But this is palpably untrue.”

CEFR level