out of business
Idioms-
No longer carrying on commercial transactions, as in He's decided to go out of business when he turns sixty-five , or The supermarkets are putting the small grocers out of business .
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Not in working order, inoperative, as in It looks as though the merry-go-round is out of business tonight . Also see out of commission ; go out , def. 5.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The number of independent shops opened in the last decade marks a stunning turnaround from the early Amazon years, when the online bookseller put an estimated 43% of stores out of business.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
And while it appears to be forcing some vendors out of business, others are hoping for a boon.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
If education meant nothing more than providing rich content, libraries and YouTube would have put our schools out of business decades ago.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
The Secure acts’ only relaxation on the litigation front offered protection if an annuity provider went out of business.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 26, 2026
If anyone else had had milk to sell, he would have been out of business in a minute.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
