lost cause

American  

noun

1. a cause that has been defeated or whose defeat is inevitable.

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lost cause British  

noun

1. a cause with no chance of success

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lost cause Idioms  

1. A hopeless undertaking, as in Trying to get him to quit smoking is a lost cause. In the 1860s this expression was widely used to describe the Confederacy. [Mid-1800s] Also see losing battle.

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Etymology

Origin of lost cause

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Firetrucks hurtled by, forgoing those burning homes believed to be lost causes.

From Los Angeles Times

They were comfortable confiding in one another to the point of calling the war “already a lost cause for Germany,” as Kiep put it.

From The Wall Street Journal

The season is far from a lost cause.

From BBC

He tried, moving trash cans and nudging back, then reluctantly concluding it was a lost cause.

From The Wall Street Journal

Red Bull's Verstappen has turned a seemingly lost cause into a thrilling late, if unexpected, charge for a fifth title.

From Barron's