blue in the face

Idioms

Exhausted from anger, strain, or other great effort. For example, You can argue until you're blue in the face, but I refuse to go. This expression alludes to the bluish skin color resulting from lack of oxygen, which presumably might result from talking until one was breathless. See also under talk one's arm off.

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.

Ms Graham said she had "tried everything" to lose weight, including the calorie-restricting 5:2 diet and reading nutrition books "until I'm blue in the face".

From BBC • Dec. 5, 2024

I got blue in the face saying “This is not ‘Seven.’

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2024

“Right now, you can empower your kids until you’re blue in the face about the internet,” Mr. Virani said in an interview.

From New York Times • Apr. 9, 2024

"That is not a mistake that we're making at all. We're going to over-communicate again, again and again until we're blue in the face."

From Reuters • Oct. 27, 2023

We did not believe in voodoo spirits, and informed each other of that fact till we were blue in the face.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023