“The powers that be” refers to those in positions of authority, often with negative connotations. It is always used in the plural and originated from the Bible. It is an idiom that can be difficult for non-native speakers to understand and should be used sparingly to avoid sounding clichéd.
“The powers that be” refers to those people who are in charge or in a position of authority. Authority figures might be part of a government, corporation, or other leadership position. The phrase often carries a somewhat negative connotation, implying that people under the rule of powers are resigned to accepting their decisions, even arbitrary ones, whether they agree with it or not.
The phrase “the powers that be” is un tantum plurale, which in Latin means “only in the plural”. This means that the phrase is only ever used in the plural and the singular phrase is never used. The powers that be can refer to only one person, however, it makes no difference in phrasing whether the speaker is referring to one person or a group of people.
The phrase “the powers that be” was first used in the King James Version of the Bible, in Romans 13:1. The direct quote is “Let every soul be subject to the higher powers. For there is no power but that of God: the existing powers are ordained by God”. Subsequently, the phrase began to be assimilated into everyday speech.
There are only a few ways to use the phrase in sentences. An example would be “The powers in charge have decided that we all have to work late today” or “The powers in charge are considering my job application”. This sentence illustrates the power and control of various authority figures, as well as the inability of the controlled persons to change the decision or challenge it. It can also be used in a sarcastic or humorous context to suggest that an authority figure is incompetent.
The Powers That Be is a type of phrase known as an idiom, which is a frequently used non-standard phrase, the meaning of which can only be gleaned by seeing the phrase as a whole, not the individual words. Due to the awkward phrasing of some idioms, they can be slightly difficult for non-native speakers to understand. In general, when speaking or writing, it’s best to avoid frequent use of idioms to avoid sounding clichéd.
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