dead in the water
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
During the height of the Covid-19 era, cruises seemed dead in the water: Nations were closing their doors and ships have long been seen as potential petri dishes given how quickly germs can spread onboard.
From Barron's ● May 6, 2026
Still, the revival of a trade deal once deemed dead in the water is good news for both the EU and India.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 28, 2026
More of this and Scotland's World Cup hopes will be dead in the water, if not in Group C but in the play-offs.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2025
Every time there’s a legal setback, the movement is declared dead in the water.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 25, 2024
He stood there, twitching nervously, dead in the water, while my siblings and I winced and held our breath to keep from laughing.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
