crash and burn
(redirected from one crashes and burns)crash and burn
1. Literally, to crash and catch fire. Typically said of a car or airplane. Her car crashed and burned, but she survived the accident.
2. To fail at something completely and dramatically. I really hope this business venture doesn't crash and burn—I'll be broke if it does. My attempt to make a speech before the whole student body really crashed and burned when I got on stage and forgot everything I was supposed to say.
3. In sports, to experience a significant accident or crash and thus have to withdraw from a competition. Alex isn't competing today because she crashed and burned on her practice run last night.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
crash and burn
1. Lit. [for a plane or car] to crash and burst into flames. The small plane crashed and burned just after it took off.
2. Fig. to fail spectacularly. Poor Chuck really crashed and burned when he made his presentation at the sales meeting.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
crash and burn
1. Fail utterly, as in Dale crashed and burned three times before passing the bar exam. This idiom alludes to a car or airplane that has crashed and caught fire. [Slang; 1970s]
2. In skateboarding and other sports, be taken out of competition by a collision, accident, or fall, as in Although she was favored to win the downhill race, she crashed and burned on her first run . [Slang; 1980s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
crash and burn
To crash and burn is to fail very badly. Stock markets don't crash and burn without warning. He will either go down in history as a very great president or he'll crash and burn. Note: This may be a reference to a plane crashing into the ground and bursting into flames.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
crash and burn
fail spectacularly. North American informal 1994 Hispanic But if you use Spanish, be careful not to crash and burn…the language is booby-trapped for the unwary PR professional.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
ˌcrash and ˈburn
(American English, slang)1 fail completely: She shot to fame, then crashed and burned.
2 fall asleep or collapse because you are very tired
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
crash and burn
1. in. [for a young man] to fail brilliantly with a romance. (see also go down in flames.) It stands to reason that if Carole hadn’t shot me down, I wouldn’t have crashed and burned.
2. in. to fail spectacularly. I have to be prepared. I don’t want to crash and burn if I don’t have to.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
crash and burn
Slang To fail utterly.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.