expect the worst

idiom

: to assume that something very bad will happen
We expect the worst when we return home after the storm passes.

Examples of expect the worst in a Sentence

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With an unknown number of casualties expected, the team at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital is told to expect the worst. — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 21 Mar. 2025 How that reduction might affect the oversight and distribution of federal financial aid is not yet clear, but some higher education expert are expecting the worst, particularly given the last year’s troubled overhaul and rollout of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. — Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025

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expectorator
expect the worst
expede
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“Expect the worst.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/expect%20the%20worst. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.

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