water over the dam

1. Also, water under the bridge. Something that is over and done with, especially an unfortunate occurrence. For example, Last year's problems with delivery are water over the dam, or Never mind that old quarrel; that's water under the bridge. These metaphoric phrases allude to water that has flowed over a spillway or under a bridge and thus is gone forever. The first term was first recorded in 1797; the variant dates from the late 1800s.

Example Sentences

“My sense is there’s a lot of water over the dam still to come before anybody can determine anybody’s individual position in the primaries of ’24 — except to say that if Donald Trump runs, he will certainly be a factor.”

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“It’s water over the dam, under the bridge, however you want to refer to it. Let’s get over it and get on with our lives.”

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The feared uncontrolled releases of water over the dam did not occur, and authorities allowed residents to return home within days.

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The team of hydraulic engineers sends water over the dam model to test design elements of a $300 million spillway rebuild set for completion by November.

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For days, DWR officials assured that the incoming storms were expected to be weaker than the ones that bloated the lake a week ago, pushing  torrents of debris-laden water over the dam’s main and emergency spillways, damaging both so badly that numerous communities downstream were forced to evacuate.

Read more on Los Angeles Times