sick man of Europe

English

Etymology

Calque of Russian больно́й челове́к Европы (bolʹnój čelovék Jevropy), a phrase coined by Czar Nicholas I of the Empire of Russia, referring to the poor state of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century.

Pronunciation

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Proper noun

sick man of Europe

  1. (archaic, politics) The Ottoman Empire.
  2. (politics) Any European country undergoing economic difficulty.
    • 2022 November 27, William Keegan, “Brexit has made Britain the sick man of Europe again”, in The Guardian‎[1]:
      Yes, we were known as the “sick man of Europe” until we joined the European Union and – guess what – we have left the EU and have regained that dubious status.

Derived terms

Translations

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