raise the white flag
Signal giving up
To raise the white flag is to signal surrender or defeat.
The expression comes from the military practice of displaying a white flag to indicate a cease-fire or willingness to negotiate.
In everyday use, it means giving up on a struggle or admitting you cannot win: After three hours of arguing, I finally raised the white flag and let her pick the restaurant.
The phrase often carries a note of reluctant acceptance rather than outright defeat.
- eat humble pieAdmit error humbly
- eat crowAcknowledge embarrassing error
- battlefieldCombat engagement area
- concessionYielding a point
- capitulationComplete yielding to demands
admit defeat · surrender · give up the fight · truce · defeat · accept defeat · concede · armistice · ceasefire · yielding · throw in the towel · call it quits · succumbing · resignation · acquiescence · relinquishment · bow to · back down
- Giving Ingive in, back down, cave in, throw in the towel, admit defeat
raise the white flagfight on
Continue resisting or struggling
keep fighting · resist · hold the line · dig in · hold out
raise the white flagdeclare war
Formally announce military action
charge · advance · open fire · counterattack · take up arms
raise the white flagpersevere
Continue despite obstacles
persist · press on · keep going · carry on · hang in there
raise, raised, raising, raiser, raises, white, whiten, whiteness, whitish