bear the brunt of

bear the brunt (of something)

To suffer the worst part of an unpleasant or problematic situation. When our system crashed, the call center employees bore the brunt of our customers' anger. Because I came home late, my sister bore the brunt of our mother's frustration about her job. Being a professional athlete took a toll on me emotionally, and my family often bore the brunt of that, unfortunately.

See also: bear, brunt

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

bear the brunt of

be the person to suffer the most (as the result of an attack, misfortune, etc.).

The origin of brunt is unknown, and may be onomatopoeic. The sense has evolved from the specific (‘a sharp or heavy blow’) to the more general (‘the shock or violence of an attack’).

See also: bear, brunt, of

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017