English idiom: stomach those silly people

[Sangeetha]

hi,
With reference to 'stomach those silly people' got 2 questons:

1: Should we use it only for a group of people to imply that we
can't stand them or for individuals to???

2: Should it only b used in the negative sense i.e can't??? Can
it be used in the positive sense?? If so please give an
example.

Regards,
Sangeetha.

[Daniela]

Question 1: “stomach” has a lot of meanings but in this particular example it means “to put up with something or somebody unpleasant”. So, you can use it not only for a group of people but for individuals as well, as well as things.
Example: I cannot stomach it. = I cannot understand and accept this.

Question 2: Here are some synonyms of the verb “stomach” – endure, bear, stand, tolerate, suffer, etc. All these verbs mean to withstand something difficult or painful. Their negative meaning implies that they are usually used in negative sentences. But keep in mind that you can have grammatically positive sentences with negative meaning.
Consider the following example:
Can you stomach his awful behaviour? = Can you tolerate/ stand/ accept it?

Hope this helps! :)
Success!

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