out of business

Idioms  

1. No longer carrying on commercial transactions, as in He's decided to go out of business when he turns sixty-five , or The supermarkets are putting the small grocers out of business .

2. Not in working order, inoperative, as in It looks as though the merry-go-round is out of business tonight . Also see out of commission ; go out , def. 5.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

out of business

Under the proposals, he claims the firm would be competing for contracts from local authorities, meaning they could go "out of business" if they failed.

From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2026

"Their goal was to put themselves out of business, to be able to get to the end of the year and say, 'You don't need me anymore,'" Yee said.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026

The Journal’s own headquarters in New York, across the street from the World Trade Center, was knocked out of business, the fate of our colleagues there unknown for hours.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Becky Davis, who told the council that she and her husband owned a gun store in Goleta long before the city incorporated in 2002, said: “You zoned me out of business, literally.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

When the shop next door, a jeweler’s called Rich’s, goes out of business, I convince Mr. Nielsen to remodel and expand.

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline

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