ɡoʊ daʊn ɪn fleɪmz
General
informal
intermediate
- Literally:
- To crash and burn in fire
What does "go down in flames" mean?
- To fail spectacularly or dramatically
- To be completely and visibly unsuccessful
Examples
- The new product launch went down in flames.
- His presidential campaign went down in flames after the scandal.
- The proposal went down in flames at the board meeting.
Origin
From aviation—aircraft that crash often catch fire. The image of dramatic, visible failure became a metaphor for any spectacular failure.
How to use it
Emphasizes the dramatic and public nature of failure. Often used for high-stakes situations.
Similar expressions
fail spectacularly
crash and burn
bomb
flop
Opposites
succeed wildly
triumph
soar
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 "go down in flames" in a CELPIP-style Speaking or Writing task. The AI feedback tells you whether your word choice worked.