blind alley

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noun

a road, alley, etc., that is open at only one end.

a position or situation offering no hope of progress or improvement: That line of reasoning will only lead you up another blind alley.

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Origin of blind alley

First recorded in 1575–85

Words nearby blind alley

blimpish, blimp out, blin, blind, blindage, blind alley, blind as a bat, blind blocking, blind casing, blindcat, blind copy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use blind alley in a sentence

The numbers reinforce another article in the Post, in which cops confessed to “turning a blind eye” to minor crimes.
Ground Zero of the NYPD Slowdown|Batya Ungar-Sargon|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And in this era of impact-blind, across-the-board budget cuts, we see an opportunity.
Can the U.S. Government Go Moneyball?|Peter Orszag, Jim Nussle|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
What designer West lacks in productivity, he more than makes up for in pure, unadulterated confidence and blind anger.
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian’s Balmain Campaign: High Fashion Meets Low Culture|Amy Zimmerman|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sandra Bullock won for ‘The Blind Side’ and Al Pacino lost for both Godfather movies.
Exclusive: Aaron Sorkin Thinks Male Film Roles Have Bigger ‘Degree of Difficulty’ Than Female Ones|William Boot|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Strandf could photograph anything from a blind woman to a picket fence and make the image indelible.
The Best Gift Books of 2014|William O’Connor|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On May 13 Polavieja arrived in Barcelona physically broken, half blind, and with evident traces of a disordered liver.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
The blind Samson of labor will seize upon the pillars of society and bring them down in a common destruction.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
Truly it was a most enjoyable season and experience, but there is no joy without its alley here below—not even at the North Pole!
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
I do not wholly like these cold and stately English, yet I think I am not blind to their many sterling qualities.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
And in that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and out of darkness and obscurity the eyes of the blind shall see.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various

British Dictionary definitions for blind alley

blind alley

noun

an alley open at one end only; cul-de-sac

informal a situation in which no further progress can be made

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with blind alley

blind alley

A dead end; a position without hope of progress or success. For example, That line of questioning led the attorney up yet another blind alley. This term alludes to a street or alley that has no outlet at one end. [Mid-1800s]

blind alley

Origin of blind alley

Words nearby blind alley

Words related to blind alley

How to use blind alley in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for blind alley

Other Idioms and Phrases with blind alley