to stomach an insult
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To swallow it and not resent it. If you must believe, stomach not all. — SHAKE- SPEARE: Antony and Cleopatra, iii, 4.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to stomach an insult” mean?
To swallow it and not resent it. If you must believe, stomach not all. — SHAKE- SPEARE: Antony and Cleopatra, iii, 4.
Is “to stomach an insult” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.