fish-out-of-water
Stranger to surroundings
A fish out of water is someone in an unfamiliar environment where they feel awkward or incompetent.
The image is of a fish flopping helplessly on land, unable to function in its new element.
Often used as a modifier: a fish-out-of-water comedy, that fish-out-of-water feeling when you start a new job.
One excluded from group
- strangerPerson not yet known
- foreignerNon-native person
- newcomerRecent arrival somewhere
- alienNon-native being
transplant · expatriate · immigrant · misfit · outcast · oddball · anomaly · pariah
Lacking grace or ease
- uncomfortableCausing unease or distress
- uneasyTroubled, not calm
- self-consciousUncomfortably aware of oneself
- embarrassedSelf-consciously uncomfortable
clumsy · anxious · nervous · insecure · vulnerable · overwhelmed · bewildered · confused
Altering to correct
- acclimatingBecoming accustomed to environment
- assimilatingAbsorbing into a whole
- integratingCombining into a whole
- learningGaining knowledge gradually
coping · transitioning · acclimatizing · adapting · conforming · blending · settling · naturalizing
From another nation
- strangeUnusual or unfamiliar
- alienNon-native being
- exoticStrikingly unusual, foreign-seeming
- unknownNot yet discovered
uncharted · novel · customs · etiquette · unaccustomed · unprepared · inexperienced · naive
outsider
One excluded from group
alien · transplant · expatriate · immigrant · misfit · outcast · oddball · anomaly · pariah · interloper
awkward
Lacking grace or ease
- uncomfortableCausing unease or distress
- uneasyTroubled, not calm
- self-consciousUncomfortably aware of oneself
embarrassed · clumsy · anxious · nervous · insecure · vulnerable · overwhelmed · bewildered · confused · disoriented
adjusting
Altering to correct
- acclimatingBecoming accustomed to environment
- assimilatingAbsorbing into a whole
- integratingCombining into a whole
learning · coping · transitioning · acclimatizing · adapting · conforming · blending · settling · naturalizing · growing
foreign
From another nation
unknown · uncharted · novel · customs · etiquette · unaccustomed · unprepared · inexperienced · naive · greenhorn
fish-out-of-waterat home
Present in one's dwelling
in one's element · right at home · native · insider · belonging
fish-out-of-waterold hand
Experienced person
veteran · natural · well-adapted · at ease · in the swim
fish, water, fishes, fished, fishing, fishy, fisherman, fishery, fisheries