burn the candle at both ends

Cultural  

1. To do more than one ought to; to overextend oneself: “His doctor said that his illness was brought on by stress and recommended that he stop burning the candle at both ends.”

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burn the candle at both ends Idioms  

1. Exhaust one's energies or resources by leading a hectic life. For example, Joseph's been burning the candle at both ends for weeks, working two jobs during the week and a third on weekends. This metaphor originated in France and was translated into English in Randle Cotgrave's Dictionary (1611), where it referred to dissipating one's wealth. It soon acquired its present broader meaning.

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Example Sentences

Because we can, because we're young, we push ourselves too hard, we burn the candle at both ends, she said, which created problems that arose when people where in their 50s.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026

“I didn’t just burn the candle at both ends, I was also finding new ends to light.”

From New York Times • Oct. 24, 2020

The NBA released its 2019-20 schedule Monday, and the big winners are East Coast fans who have been forced to burn the candle at both ends.

From Washington Post • Aug. 12, 2019

In a LinkedIn post last year, The Huffington Post president and editor-in-chief Arianna Huffington revealed that she’s often asked if young people pursuing their dreams should burn the candle at both ends?

From Time • Jul. 24, 2015

I can’t burn the candle at both ends.

From The Gorgeous Girl by Bartley, Nalbro