lost cause

See synonyms for: lost causelost causes on Thesaurus.com

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

Origin of lost cause

1
First recorded in 1860–65

Words Nearby lost cause

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use lost cause in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lost cause

lost cause

noun
  1. a cause with no chance of success

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with lost cause

lost cause

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.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.