Complaining loudly over a small issue

Mobin Shabani

Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2025
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
Persian
Home Country
Iran
Current Location
Iran
Hi everyone,

I am looking for an expression or a phrase to describe the following situation:

A passenger walking down the aisle on a plane and she is putting her baggage in the overhead compartment when she realizes that someone else’s suicase is already there. Knowing that that section of the overhead compartment belongs to her, she starts complaining loudly for a long time. She goes a little too far and this annoys other passengers.

One of the passengers on the plane tells his friend “ I wouldn’t ……. about/ over a suitcase”. He means I wouldn’t make a huge complaint over a small issue like that.

What word or expression do you suggest putting in the blank?
 
Last edited:
Thank you. Can it be followed by over a suitcase?
It's not usually followed by anything at all. The context would already be clear so someone would just say "Don't make a mountain out of a molehill!" or "You're making a mountain out of a molehill". If necessary, it could be followed by a separate statement such as "It's just a suitcase. You can put it somewhere else".

Edit: I just noticed that it's not clear if the person is speaking directly to the woman making a fuss. It's not impossible that they would use the mountain/molehill phrase, but in my opinion that's more likely to be said direct to her. If it's just two other passengers talking about it, they'd probably just say "Why is she making such a fuss?"
 

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