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Meaning of hell to pay | Babel Free

Noun CEFR C1

Definitions

Very unpleasant consequences; a great deal of trouble.

idiomatic, uncountable

Examples

“"When I'm hungry, there's hell to pay⟳ if I'm not fed quick."”
“"I told him I had sent for you an' when you got heah these slippery, mysterious thieves, whoever they were, would shore have⟳ hell to pay⟳."”
“Congressman Bart Stupak of Michigan . . . vows that "there will be hell to pay⟳" if his language gets stripped out of, or weakened in, the final legislation.”

CEFR level

C1
Advanced
This word is part of the CEFR C1 vocabulary — advanced level.
See all C1 English words →

See also

hell week hell-bent hell-diver hell-for-leather hell-hound hell-raiser

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