spot of bother
/ˈspɑt əv ˈbɑðɚ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.27 in modern English
22
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A slight problem; a small predicament.
Example Sentences
- "I had a spot of bother with a sticky key on my keyboard."
- "As Gerald was aware, a spot of bother, a revival of the divorce fixation, had wafted Lydia temporarily on a visit to an aunt in Westmorland."
- "'Hullo, Charles,' he drawled. 'I'm afraid we've run into a spot of bother.' / A spot of bother, I thought. Christ!"
- "Loseby was telling them that he was in a spot of bother. That's what he called it. But somehow he always managed to get out of spots of bother. Or someone got him out."
- "Charlie […] I heard about your spot of bother. / Alex Spot of bother? / Charlie Your dad told us. I was sorry to hear that. / Alex It was hardly a spot of bother, Grandad. My best mate's gonna get sent to prison for burning a house down."
- ""Your topic, dear boy, your topic. 'Plastic Surgery in Small Animals.' I think you're in for a …"—she appeared to be searching for just the right turn of phrase and then added—"a spot of bother." / "A spot of bother," I repeated. / […] / What concerned me was her use of the phrase "a spot of bother." "A spot of bother" is one of many great British understatements. […] It is almost certain that during the famous Battle of Hastings in 1066 when King Harold took a direct hit from William the Conqueror's forces with an arrow to the eye, he turned to his knights and confessed that he was in a "spot of bother.""
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈspɑt əv ˈbɑðɚ/
- British English: /ˈspɒt əv ˈbɒðə(ɹ)/