crashed and burned
Went down hard
Crashed and burned describes total, often dramatic failure.
The image comes from aviation disasters—a plane doesn't just crash, it crashes *and* burns.
The phrase emphasizes completeness of the failure: The startup crashed and burned after six months.
It can also describe personal collapse: I crashed and burned after the breakup.
Sometimes shortened to crash and burn as a verb or warning.
- founderOne who begins something
- train wreckUtter chaotic disaster
- wreckDestroyed vessel or vehicle
- mishapMinor unfortunate occurrence
- failureLack of success
went down in flames · sink · down the drain · up in smoke · fiasco · flop · phoenix · smashed · bankruptcy · career suicide · debacle · destroy · nosedive · collapsed · breakup · hit rock bottom · disaster · layoff
crashed and burnedhit it out of the park
Succeed beyond expectations
triumphed · nailed it · crushed it · smashed it · killed it
crashed and burnedstuck the landing
Finished a routine perfectly
petered out · soft landing · graceful exit · smooth landing · tapered off
crash, crashed, crashes, crashing, crasher, burn, burned, burning, burner