woe to/betide
idiom
old-fashioned
—used as a warning that there will be trouble if someone does something specified
Woe betide anyone who enters here!
Woe to any student who is late for her class.
Examples of woe to/betide in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
So, woe to the Loews, but AFM should feel right at home there.
—
Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Nov. 2024
Disney recommends paying between 18% and 20% for service and woe betide anyone who tries to avoid that charge.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Influence can come from anywhere, and woe to those who don’t realize that.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2024
Since the 1992 riots, a new philosophy has taken hold in L.A. as the population diversified and the old guard largely high-tailed it out of here: Influence can come from anywhere, and woe to those who don’t realize that.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2024
Listeners are encircled in rich and richly present sound — and, woe to the jet-lagged, tucked into dangerously comfortable seats (designed by the German automaker Recaro).
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024
But woe to those who mistake his European civility for a lack of competitive fire.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2024
And woe to the one who, in the eyes of the receiver, gives something unwanted.
—Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 20 Dec. 2023
The Death Star succors, energizes, feeds, clothes, medicates, houses, warms, and cools us with its throbbing complexity—woe to the planets in the way of its progress.
—Christopher Ketcham, Harper's Magazine, 1 Nov. 2023
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Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Nov. 2024
Disney recommends paying between 18% and 20% for service and woe betide anyone who tries to avoid that charge.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Influence can come from anywhere, and woe to those who don’t realize that.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2024
Since the 1992 riots, a new philosophy has taken hold in L.A. as the population diversified and the old guard largely high-tailed it out of here: Influence can come from anywhere, and woe to those who don’t realize that.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2024
Listeners are encircled in rich and richly present sound — and, woe to the jet-lagged, tucked into dangerously comfortable seats (designed by the German automaker Recaro).
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024
But woe to those who mistake his European civility for a lack of competitive fire.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2024
And woe to the one who, in the eyes of the receiver, gives something unwanted.
—Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 20 Dec. 2023
The Death Star succors, energizes, feeds, clothes, medicates, houses, warms, and cools us with its throbbing complexity—woe to the planets in the way of its progress.
—Christopher Ketcham, Harper's Magazine, 1 Nov. 2023
Dictionary Entries Near woe to/betide
Cite this Entry
“Woe to/betide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woe%20to%2Fbetide. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025.
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