Lump In Your Throat

Meaning of Idiom ‘Lump in Your (or one’s) Throat

A lump in one’s throat is a feeling of tightness, constriction, or dryness in the throat caused by strong emotions such as grief; strong emotions that make it difficult to speak. 1,2,3


Want to see more videos from Idioms.Online? Subscribe to our YouTube channel!

Usage

This idiom is used in the following typical phrases:

  • Have a lump in your throat
  • Get a lump in your throat
  • Bring a lump to one’s throat

Although a lump in one’s throat can describe an actual physical feeling in the throat, it also has a figurative meaning and can be used whether or not such a feeling of tightness in the throat actually occurs.

Examples Of Use

“The ending of that movie gave me a lump in my throat. I was afraid people would see me cry in public!”

“Seeing her again after so many years brought a lump to my throat.”

“I have to admit, I had a lump in my throat at the wedding. It’s about time they made it official.”

Origin

Used since the 1800s, this idiom associates a tightness in the throat caused by strong emotion to an actual physical swelling. 4

More Idioms Starting with L

More Body Part Idioms

More Lump Idioms

More Throat Idioms

References
  1. Heacock, Paul. Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms]. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2010.
  2. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
  3. Ayto, John. Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms. Oxford: Oxford U, 2010.
  4. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.