at the end of (one's) tether
(redirected from at the end of her tether)
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at the end of (one's) tether
Completely worn out, exasperated, or exhausted; having no more patience, endurance, or energy left. Joshua has been throwing a tantrum all afternoon, and with all the other things I have to get done, I'm simply at the end of my tether! Daniel's been at the end of his tether for weeks now—he has seriously got to get a different job!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
at the end of your tether
COMMON If you are at the end of your tether, you are very upset because you are no longer able to deal with a difficult situation. I had tried every solution I could think of: I was at the end of my tether.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
at the end of your tether
having no patience, resources, or energy left to cope with something.A North American variant of this expression is at the end of your rope , and in both cases the image is that of a grazing animal tethered on a rope that allows it a certain range in which to move but which at full stretch prohibits further movement.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
end of one's rope/tether, at the/come to the
To have exhausted one’s resources or abilities. The term alludes to a tethered (roped) animal that can graze only as far as the length of the rope permits. “Being run to the end of his Rope, as one that had no more Excuses to make,” wrote Sir John Chardin in 1686 (The Coronation of Solyman the Third). “I am at the end of my tether” was close to being a cliché by the time Royall Tyler used the line in his comedy The Contrast (first U.S. production in 1787).
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer