come to nothing

Idioms  

1. Also, come to naught. Fail, as in All his efforts have come to nothing, or The last round of peace talks came to naught. The first term dates from the mid-1500s, the variant from the early 1600s.

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

come to nothing

That case has wound on for years, leaving each of the victims to constantly relive their worst moments, constantly fear that all of their courage would come to nothing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2026

They both told how they had left for the capital in search of work but their hopes of finding opportunities there had come to nothing.

From Barron's ● Mar. 14, 2026

While prospectors have long proposed mining the ocean floor, much like oil companies drill offshore, such efforts have come to nothing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025

This is true even if the federal probes come to nothing.

From Slate ● Sep. 12, 2024

But all of his bold resolve would have come to nothing without the vast indigenous army whose leaders believed they could use the Spanish presence to catalyze the destruction of the Triple Alliance.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• baffle
• deceive
• disconcert
• disenchant
• dishearten
• disillusion
• dissatisfy
• dumbfound
• fail
• hamper
• mislead