Meaning of running sore | Babel Free

Definitions

1. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see running, sore.; an ulcer that oozes pus.
2. A festering problem; a situation that remains problematic or gets worse over time.

Equivalents

Examples

“In Bohemia, it is claimed, there is no case of old running sore or ulcer which it will not completely and permanently heal.”

“There was a running sore on the back of the foot all the time . When the pus ran from the sore it stuck to the bandage.”

“Economically and politically confused and disordered, in the period between the two world wars the Austrian Republic was a running sore in Europe.”

“The case of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and some of his colleagues is a running sore in people's minds.”

“This final running sore through several years did not leave the Queen unscathed, since it was clear that the palace had neglected its duty, either to persuade Charles to give up his long-running affair with Camilla Parker Bowles, or to protect and advise Diana how to cope with the international celebrity that had suddenly been thrust upon her.”

“From the early days, the government had controlled railway rates of carriage - notably for freight, which the railways had an obligation to convey. This 'all traffic offering' obligation and government control of freight rates combined to produce a running sore that would last into the 1950s.”

CEFR level