walk the plank

Idioms

Be forced to resign, as in We were sure that Ted hadn't left of his own accord; he'd walked the plank. This metaphoric idiom alludes to a form of execution used in the 17th century, mainly by pirates, whereby a victim was forced to walk off the end of a board placed on the edge of the ship's deck and so drown. [Second half of 1800s]

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.

Change was inevitable and the right call was made for coach Matthew Mott, rather than captain Jos Buttler, to walk the plank.

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2025

Jen Kiggans had the haunted look of a woman about to walk the plank.

From Washington Post • Apr. 28, 2023

Yet despite this knowledge, we still seem poised to "walk the plank with our eyes wide open," to quote Gotye's hit 2010 song on the topic.

From Salon • Sep. 1, 2021

But these guys are serious, and they’re not about to walk the plank just because the Coastal Commission picked a nit or two.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 15, 2021

The one just before I'd have to walk the plank.

From "Ghost" by Jason Reynolds

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023