come to a grinding halt
To halt progression very abruptly, especially in an ultimately detrimental or undesirable manner. Likened to a machine or automobile that stops functioning due to the grinding of gears. Things had been going well with the new project, but when our manager was fired, everything came to a grinding halt. Work on the tax legislation has come to a grinding halt in Congress. How are you going to continue to progress in your current job? Sounds to me like any advancement has come to a grinding halt.
come to a screeching halt
To halt progression very abruptly, especially in an ultimately detrimental or undesirable manner. Likened to the wheels or brakes of an automobile making a screeching noise as it stops. Things had been going well with the new project, but when our manager was fired, everything came to a screeching halt. Work on the tax legislation has come to a screeching halt in Congress. Our research came to a screeching halt after a sudden reduction in funding.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
come to a grinding/screeching halt
Stop suddenly. Referring to the noise made by gears or brakes during a sudden stop, these phrases date from the second half of the 1900s. The National Observer of December 4, 1976, had: “A lot of that stuff is going to come to a screeching halt quickly, and we’re not going to do the screeching.” It is also put as grind to a halt.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer