a sinking feeling


sinking feeling

A feeling of dread indicating that something bad has happened or is about to happen. As soon as I met him, I got a sinking feeling that he had bad intentions. When I heard about the plane crash, I had a sinking feeling that my friends were on that flight.See also: feeling, sink

a sinking feeling

COMMON If you have a sinking feeling, you suddenly feel that something bad has happened or is likely to happen. I began to have a sinking feeling that I was not going to get rid of her. I've got a sinking feeling that eight months work has just been lost.See also: feeling, sink

a (or that) sinking feeling

an unpleasant feeling caused by the realization that something unpleasant or undesirable has happened or is about to happen.See also: feeling, sink

(get/have) a/that ˈsinking feeling

(informal) a feeling that something bad has happened/is going to happen: Most people know that sinking feeling you get when a bill arrives in the post.See also: feeling, sink, that

sinking feeling, a

A sense of distress, often perceived in one’s midsection. This term, which dates from the late nineteenth century, alludes to feeling hungry, frightened, or discouraged. About 1920 an advertising slogan for Bovril, a brand of beef extract touted as a restorative, was, “Bovril prevents that sinking feeling.” See also: sink