square peg in a round hole
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a square peg in a round hole
A person who does not fit in or is not comfortable with others or in a particular situation; someone who is unsuited to a certain task, position, situation, or group of people. It only took three months to realize I was a square peg in a round hole at the firm. I guess I just don't buy into the whole corporate hierarchy of modern business. John was a bit of a square peg in a round hole throughout high school, but when he went to college he found all sorts of people he could relate to.
square peg in a round hole
Fig. someone who is uncomfortable or who does not belong in a particular situation. (Also the cliché: trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, trying to combine two things that do not belong or fit together.) I feel like a square peg in a round hole at my office. Everyone else there seems so ambitious, competitive, and dedicated to the work, but I just want to make a living. Trying to teach me math is like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. I'm convinced my brain is not built right to understand algebra.
square peg in a round hole
Also, round peg in a square hole. A misfit, especially a person unsuited for a position or activity. For example, Ruth doesn't have the finesse for this job; she's a round peg in a square hole. This idiom, with its graphic image of something that cannot fit, dates from about 1800.
square peg (in a round hole)
n. someone who does not fit in. I’m a square peg in a round hole. Maybe I am meant to be eccentric.
square peg in a round hole
Informal A misfit.
square peg in a round hole
A misfit. Its origin attributed to the 19th-century British philosopher and cleric Sydney Smith, the phrase has been used in a business context to describe someone who doesn't fit in to corporate culture, isn't a team player, and therefore stands little chance of corporate advancement.