out of one's league
English
Pronunciation
Audio (General Australian): (file)
Prepositional phrase
- (idiomatic) In a situation in which one is mismatched with one or more others whose accomplishments, preparedness, or other characteristics are on a significantly higher or lower level than one's own.
- 1987, Patrick Swayze, Stacy Widelitz, “She's Like the Wind”, performed by Patrick Swayze:
- Feel her breath in my face / Her body close to me / Can't look in her eyes / She's out of my league
- 2008 June 3, Laura Collins-Hughes, “Neil LaBute Finds Reasons To Be Nice”, in New York Sun[1] (theatre review), archived from the original on 5 June 2008:
- He has an unwitting instructor in his cocky, bullying co-worker and pal, Kent (Pablo Schreiber), a slimeball whose knockout wife, Carly (Piper Perabo), is way out of his league.
- (idiomatic) Out of one's depth; in a situation which one is poorly prepared to handle.
- These questions are out of my league, please let me ask a higher-up.
- 1964 May 15, “Also Current (book reviews)”, in Time[2], archived from the original on 7 March 2012:
- Most U.S. authors trying to depict European sophistication seem indefinably out of their league, like children sashaying around in grown-up shoes.
- (idiomatic) Too good or too expensive for one.
- An expensive car is out of your league right now, don't you think?
Synonyms
Translations
in a situation in which one is mismatched with one or more others
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in a situation which one is poorly prepared to handle
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too good or too expensive