How to Use up against a/the wall in a Sentence

up against a/the wall

idiom
  • The occupants of the truck were dragged out, kicked and forced up against a wall.
    Christopher Sherman, ajc, 8 June 2023
  • And Coleman feels up against a wall with Gov. Kay Ivey.
    al, 11 Feb. 2023
  • My back’s up against the wall, so my legs don’t get taken out.
    Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 26 June 2024
  • Bishop and the seven others were lined up against a wall in the fort and gunned down.
    Rennie Svirnovskiy, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2023
  • Your butt should be up against the wall so that your body is at a 90-degree angle.
    Maggie O'Neill, SELF, 31 Mar. 2023
  • They’re meant to be set up against a wall, so only one side of the tree is full enough to be on display.
    Genevieve Cepeda, People.com, 19 Nov. 2024
  • The same goes for furniture like a couch or TV console backed up against the wall.
    Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Dec. 2024
  • Lying with your feet up against the wall can help get things moving too.
    Hannah Coates, Vogue, 28 Dec. 2024
  • Rafe ends up pushing Ward up against a wall and threatens him to leave town... or else.
    Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 28 Feb. 2023
  • In another shot, Kerr shows four pairs of white shoes lined up against a wall.
    Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 1 Sep. 2023
  • In another shot, Kerr showed four pairs of white shoes lined up against a wall.
    Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 27 Feb. 2024
  • At Perry's home, Perry tried to pull the girl's shirt up and pushed her up against a wall, the complaint said.
    Evan Frank, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 24 Mar. 2021
  • There are no tables free, but a young woman directs us to a tiny inch of space right up against the wall.
    Vulture, 26 Oct. 2023
  • House members are packed back up against the wall with the small group of reporters allowed to attend.
    Riley Beggin, USA TODAY, 20 Jan. 2025
  • The video shows the inmate placing his hands on Pizzo's neck after he is pinned up against the wall.
    NBC News, 8 Sep. 2020
  • The officer instructs Anderson to get up against the wall, the video shows.
    Minyvonne Burke, NBC News, 12 Jan. 2023
  • In the footage, five support braces lean up against the wall and one – the closest to the camera – gradually bends.
    Holly Yan, CNN, 5 June 2023
  • To further calm your nervous system, lie down and put your legs up against a wall.
    Melanie Mannarino, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Dec. 2024
  • News reports showed dozens of people lined up against a wall near a taxiway.
    NBC News, 29 Oct. 2021
  • In another room, guests lined up against a wall and the room started spinning as three creepy clowns jumped around the walls.
    Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 25 Feb. 2022
  • But there was another box, still flat and unpacked, propped up against a wall in the living room.
    Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2025
  • Every kid would line up against the wall and wait to be admitted into a cramped nurse’s office to take the test.
    Hazlitt, 18 Oct. 2023
  • Conversely, it should never be placed beside the door or pushed up against a wall.
    Alyssa Gautieri, Good Housekeeping, 28 Apr. 2023
  • This movement is battle hardened because we were put up against the wall in 2021.
    Steve Inskeep, NPR, 19 Jan. 2025
  • In one case, a few boys were walking home and throwing sticks when police swarmed them, drew guns and ordered the boys up against a wall.
    Eric Umansky, ProPublica, 23 June 2020
  • The Texans are up against the wall with quality opponents in the AFC playoff race.
    Andy Biggs, Newsweek, 24 Dec. 2024
  • The Chiefs later added another Butker field goal to push Houston’s backs up against the wall.
    Kevin Dotson, CNN, 19 Jan. 2025
  • Jeffrey Wright plays a frustrated academic up against the wall of what Black books must be to sell.
    Leanne Italie, Quartz, 2 Mar. 2024
  • Jeffrey Wright plays a frustrated academic up against the wall of what Black books must be to sell.
    Leanne Italie, Chicago Tribune, 29 Jan. 2024
  • Employers have had their backs up against a wall for months as turnover woes continue to roil the workforce.
    Megan Leonhardt, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'up against a/the wall.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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