at the mercy of

phrase

: wholly in the power of : with no way to protect oneself against

We were at the mercy of the weather.

Examples of at the mercy of in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Hathaway plays a suburban mom whose neighborhood is suddenly and mysteriously transported from 1982 to prehistoric times, putting family and neighbors at the mercy of hungry dinosaurs. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 23 Aug. 2026

Short-term leases can lead to spiking costs and scarce supply, and could leave Anthropic at the mercy of another company’s pricing. — Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 14 Aug. 2026

For all their vaunted power, superheroes are at the mercy of the people who write them, draw them, play them on the screen, and by extension the producers and executives who decide what should go where and for how much. — Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026

The treasurer sent the district $33 million on Thursday and pledged more would come soon, but her office is at the mercy of others to get the bills out the door. — Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 1 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for at the mercy of

• above
• foxglove
• hereof
• thereof
• whereof
• dove
• glove
• love
• shove
• hereinabove