put through the wringer
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
To be severely tested or subjected to intense stress
Literally: to pass through a laundry wringer
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
After a tough week, she felt like she had been put through the wringer
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 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Equivalents & related
Common questions
What does “put through the wringer” mean?
To be severely tested or subjected to intense stress Literally: to pass through a laundry wringer
Is “put through the wringer” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.
What is the closest equivalent?
“ăn hành” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.