burnout

[ burn-out ]
/ ˈbɜrnˌaʊt /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR burnout ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a fire that is totally destructive of something.
Also burn-out . fatigue, frustration, or apathy resulting from prolonged stress, overwork, or intense activity.
Rocketry.
  1. the termination of effective combustion in a rocket engine, due to exhaustion of propellant.
  2. the end of the powered portion of a rocket's flight.
Electricity. the breakdown of a lamp, motor, or other electrical device due to the heat created by the current flowing through it.

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Origin of burnout

First recorded in 1900–05; noun use of verb phrase burn out
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to burnout

junkie, addict, user, fatigue, weariness, weakness, lethargy, collapse, lassitude, debility, debilitation, consumption, feebleness, expenditure, prostration, enervation, heaviness, listlessness, languor, ennui

British Dictionary definitions for burnout

burn out

verb (adverb)

to become or cause to become worn out or inoperative as a result of heat or frictionthe clutch burnt out
(intr) (of a rocket, jet engine, etc) to cease functioning as a result of exhaustion of the fuel supply
(tr; usually passive) to destroy by fire
to become or cause to become exhausted through overwork or dissipation

noun burnout

the failure of a mechanical device from excessive heating
a total loss of energy and interest and an inability to function effectively, experienced as a result of excessive demands upon one's resources or chronic overwork
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

Idioms and Phrases with burnout

burn out
1

Stop functioning because something, such as fuel, has been used up. For example, There's nothing wrong with the lamp; the light bulb just burned out. [Late 1300s]

2

be burned out. Lose one's home, place of work, or school as the result of a fire. For example, Hundreds of tenants are burned out every year because of negligent landlords.

3

Also, burn oneself out. Make or become exhausted or disaffected, especially with one's work or schooling. For example, Many young lawyers burn themselves out after a few years of 70-hour weeks. This metaphoric term alludes to a fire going out for lack of new fuel. Robert Southey used it in an 1816 essay: “The spirit of Jacobinism was burnt out in France.” [1970s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.