broad shoulders
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Able to handle or cope with difficulties or responsibilities
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Có khả năng xử lý hoặc đối phó với khó khăn hoặc trách nhiệm
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: strong, wide shoulders
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
He has broad shoulders and can manage the team's problems
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “broad shoulders” mean?
Able to handle or cope with difficulties or responsibilities Literally: strong, wide shoulders
Is “broad shoulders” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.