🗓️ Idiom: Hit a Snag
💬 Meaning
- To face an unexpected problem or delay.
- It means something is stopping or slowing progress temporarily.
🧠 Example Sentences
- The shipment hit a snag when customs held it for inspection.
- We hit a snag in the delivery process due to a system error.
- Everything was going well until we hit a snag with the transport permits.
🏛️ Origin
Originally, a “snag” referred to a tree stump or hidden obstacle in a river that could stop a boat. Over time, the idiom came to mean any unexpected problem or delay in progress, including in business or logistics.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
The supply chain project __________ when one of the main suppliers went out of business.
Answer
hit a snag
2. Choose the correct meaning of “hit a snag”:
A) To finish early
B) To face an unexpected problem
C) To change direction
D) To save money
Answer
B) To face an unexpected problem
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“We had an unexpected delay in the middle of the delivery process.” → Change the sentence using: hit a snag
Answer
We hit a snag in the middle of the delivery process.
ℹ️ Other Useful Pages
Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
