Meaning

If you are "sick and tired of" something, it has happened so many times that your patience is gone. You are not ill and you are not sleepy. The two words are stacked together for weight, the way people say "over and done with". Nearly every time, the phrase is followed by "of" and a noun or an -ing verb: "sick and tired of waiting", "sick and tired of his excuses".

The feeling behind it is frustration that has built up over weeks, not a single bad moment. That makes it strong. Said about a situation ("the traffic", "the noise upstairs"), it is a normal complaint between friends or colleagues. Said about a person, to their face, it sounds like the start of a fight: "I'm sick and tired of you being late" is a warning. If you want to raise the same problem calmly, try "This keeps happening, and it's starting to bother me."

In a conversation

MarcusPriya
  1. Marcus
  2. Priya
  3. Marcus
  4. Priya
  5. Marcus

Say it out loud

Tap a sentence to hear it. Say it after the voice.

Check yourself

1A coworker says, "I'm sick and tired of these late meetings." What does she mean?
2Which is the calmer way to raise a repeated problem with a colleague?

Practice · 3 min

Listen, then say each line. Put the weight on "sick" and on "tired", and let "and" shrink to a quick "n".

Say it today

Use it once in a real conversation before tomorrow. Out loud counts, even to yourself.