pattern

Failure - Defeat

Master English idioms regarding defeat, like "out of the running" and "dead in the water".

review-disable

Review

flashcard-disable

Flashcards

quiz-disable

Quiz

Start learning
English idioms related to Failure
dead loss

a situation or activity that is not productive

[noun]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dead loss\"
to come to grief

to have an undesirable, unfortunate, or disappointing outcome

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [come] to grief\"
out of the running

with no chance of succeeding in a competition

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"out of the running\"
wide of the mark

far from the correct or expected result

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"wide (of|off) the mark\"
comedy of errors

a situation or series of events that is marked by a sequence of humorous mistakes, mishaps, or misunderstandings

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"comedy of errors\"
dog days

a period of hardship, struggle, or adversity

[noun]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dog days\"
to miss the boat

to lose the chance to take advantage of something, particularly a good opportunity

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [miss] the (boat|bus)\"
dead man walking

someone who is prone to lose something that is of great value or importance to them, such as their position, job, title, etc.

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dead man walking\"
dead duck

someone or something that has never succeeded or is very unlikely to succeed in the future

[noun]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dead duck\"
to come a cropper

to suddenly fail at something

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [come] a cropper\"
dead end

a situation that shows no signs of progress or improvement

[noun]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dead end\"
dead in the water

used to describe a situation or plan that has come to a complete halt or has become unproductive, with little to no chance of progress or success

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"dead in the water\"
to pass one's sell-by date

to be no longer effective or of much use

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [pass] {one's} sell-by date\"
down for the count

having failed in doing or achieving something and unable to continue

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"down for the count\"
to go down in the world

to experience a fall in social or financial status

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [go|come] down in the world\"
yesterday's man

someone who was once significant or important but is now considered outdated or no longer influential

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"yesterday's (man|woman)\"
to draw a blank

to be unable to come up with ideas or solutions to a problem

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [draw] a blank\"
the writing is on the wall

used to say that there are clear indications or signals that something negative or disastrous is going to happen soon, and that it is likely to be unavoidable

[sentence]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"the writing [is] on the wall\"
to take somebody to the cleaners

to defeat a person or a group thoroughly, often in a very humiliating manner

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [take] {sb} to the cleaners\"
wooden spoon

an imaginary or symbolic prize given to the person who finishes in last place or performs poorly in a competition or event

[noun]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"wooden spoon\"
to knock somebody off one's feet

to overwhelm or defeat someone completely and unexpectedly

[phrase]
daily words
wordlist
Close
Sign in
Definition & Meaning of \"to [knock] {sb} off {one's} feet\"
LanGeek
Download LanGeek app