bɜrn jɔr boʊts
- Literally:
- To set fire to your ships
What does "burn your boats" mean?
- To commit fully to a course of action with no possibility of turning back
- To eliminate any option to retreat
Examples
- By announcing publicly, she burned her boats—now she has to follow through.
- Quitting without another job lined up is burning your boats.
- Sometimes you need to burn your boats to force yourself to succeed.
Origin
From military history—commanders would burn their boats after landing to show troops there was no retreat. Attributed to various commanders including Cortés in Mexico (1519), though historians debate this.
How to use it
Similar to 'burn your bridges' but emphasizes commitment rather than damaged relationships. Can be positive (bold commitment) or negative (reckless).
Similar expressions
Opposites
Related idioms
- actions speak louder than words
What people do is more important than what they say
- better safe than sorry
It's better to be careful and prevent problems than to take risks
- so far so good
Things have gone well up to now
- easier said than done
Something is more difficult to do than to talk about
- make a long story short
To summarize or get to the point
- to make matters worse
In addition to existing problems
Use it in a practice answer
Try "burn your boats" in a CELPIP-style Speaking or Writing task. The AI feedback tells you whether your word choice worked.