falls flat
Lands without impact
Falls flat describes something that fails to produce the intended effect, especially humor or emotional impact.
A joke falls flat when no one laughs.
A speech falls flat when the audience remains unmoved.
The image is of something that should rise or land with force instead collapsing limply to the ground: His attempt at charm fell completely flat.
- misfireFailure to discharge
- missed the markFailed to achieve goal
- flopComplete commercial failure
- belly flopFlat, painful dive
- awkwardnessLack of grace or ease
egg on face · underperformance · dud · dead on arrival · fiasco · disinterest · nonresponse · breaks down · rejection · disconnect · lost in translation · crickets · apathy · thud · silence · tough crowd · anticlimax · inefficacy