come up against — face a difficult situation or problem
phrasal verbB2IELTS 5.5+neutralcommon
to suddenly have to deal with a difficult situation, problem, or obstacle.
Say it like a native
Textbook We encountered considerable opposition to the proposal.
Native We came up against a lot of opposition.
'Come up against' is how people describe hitting resistance; 'encountered considerable opposition' is report-speak.
Pattern: come up against + noun/pronoun
In use
- We came up against a lot of problems when we tried to renovate the old house.daily life
- During my studies, I often came up against tight deadlines, which taught me how to manage my time better.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ We came up against with some problems.
✓ We came up against some problems.
No 'with' — 'come up against' takes the obstacle directly.
Common collocations
come up against + obstacle— opposition, resistance, a problem, a brick wall
Don't confuse it
'Come across' means to find or meet by chance, not to face a problem.