down the tubes
Gone to ruin
Down the tubes means ruined, wasted, or failed.
Plans, money, relationships, or efforts go down the tubes when they come to nothing: All that work went right down the tubes.
The image suggests something being flushed away or lost irretrievably.
The variant down the drain carries the same meaning.
- gone to potDeteriorated significantly over time
- out the windowDismissed and forgotten
- crash and burnFail completely and visibly
- circle the drainNearing final collapse
- lossBeing without something
fall apart · come apart at the seams · squander · collapse · go belly up · ruin · fall flat · disappointment · fiasco · go south · hit rock bottom · bankruptcy · up in smoke · downfall · irreparable · discard · bite the dust · deterioration
- declinedecline, in decline, decrease, downswing, on the decline
down the tubesthriving
Succeeding vigorously
flourishing · working out · paying off · on track · panning out
down the tubeson the rise
Becoming greater or more
on the up and up · taking off · going places · gaining steam · picking up