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Synonyms

go downhill

Idioms  

  1. Deteriorate, worsen, as in Ever since the recession began, the business has been going downhill. The figurative use of downhill for “decline” dates from the mid-1800s. Also see downhill all the way.

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.

Economic growth in the Southeast Asian nation is anaemic and there could still be an opportunity for Pheu Thai in future "if the economy continues to go downhill", Chambers said.

From Barron's • Feb. 9, 2026

"On our side it was the opposite, even after conceding the two goals very close to each other. The danger was that I knew half the team could go downhill because we were physically drained."

From BBC • Jan. 18, 2025

Let’s begin by celebrating the man whose year is only going to go downhill from here.

From Slate • Jan. 4, 2025

‘We expect things to go downhill Wednesday night and through Thursday,” he said.

From New York Times • Apr. 1, 2024

She explained that the cooperative had begun to go downhill and that the partners had had to look for higher-paying jobs and that even Mustafa had gone back to his country.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

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.