bite the dust

Cultural  

1. Literally, to fall face down in the dirt; to suffer a defeat: “Once again, the champion wins, and another contender bites the dust.”

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bite the dust Idioms  

1. Suffer defeat or death, as in The 1990 election saw both of our senators bite the dust. Although this expression was popularized by American Western films of the 1930s, in which either cowboys or Indians were thrown from their horses to the dusty ground, it originated much earlier. Tobias Smollett had it in Gil Blas (1750): “We made two of them bite the dust.”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bite the dust

The fervor goes beyond the historic rivalry between Pele's Brazil and Diego Maradona's Argentina: Mexico, Colombia, Chile and others are all hoping Lionel Messi's Albiceleste bite the dust on Sunday.

From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026

The hopes of another 16 nations will bite the dust after the first knockout round, which includes England against DR Congo and holders Argentina against surprise package Cape Verde.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

Should City’s woes continue, or put another way should Guardiola persist in playing a high defensive line with Nicolás Otamendi at the heart of it, another pre-season theory will soon bite the dust.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 14, 2019

We don’t see Tyene bite the dust on-screen, but I can’t imagine Benioff and Weiss suddenly deciding she’s worth the narrative investment to have her wriggle out of this.

From The Verge ● Jul. 31, 2017

This spirit-vandal would humble my soul and force me to bite the dust of material things.

From The World I Live In by Keller, Helen