all hell breaks loose
idiom
informal
—used to describe what happens when violent, destructive, and confused activity suddenly begins
I heard people shouting at each other, and suddenly all hell broke loose.
Examples of all hell breaks loose in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
When Tyrone the demonic socket puppet comes alive on Jason’s hand, all hell breaks loose.
—
David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately, the Book of the Dead awaits, and all hell breaks loose when an archeologist recites passages from the text.
—Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2023
Naturally, all hell breaks loose as the creatures crash to Earth and promptly begin devouring any readily available humans.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 7 Feb. 2024
Substitute goat cheese for Swiss or American, though, and all hell breaks loose.
—Pete Wells, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024
Of course, all hell breaks loose, and at one point, Dickinson even stumbles on the grave of another poet, William Blake, and the full scope of the preacher’s nightmare comes into focus.
—Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 25 Jan. 2024
When India decides to make a controversial public statement about the movie, all hell breaks loose in Hollywood, especially when India’s reproductive history inspires pro-life advocates to hold her up as a model of motherhood.
—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2024
Patek Philippe is widely regarded as the world’s finest watch manufacturer, but ask a cohort of collectors, retailers, bloggers and auctioneers to come to a consensus on the five best models the firm has introduced since 2000 and all hell breaks loose.
—Victoria Gomelsky, Robb Report, 20 Dec. 2023
When Superman is grown up, suddenly there’s a mass exodus and all hell breaks loose.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 19 Oct. 2023
David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately, the Book of the Dead awaits, and all hell breaks loose when an archeologist recites passages from the text.
—Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2023
Naturally, all hell breaks loose as the creatures crash to Earth and promptly begin devouring any readily available humans.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 7 Feb. 2024
Substitute goat cheese for Swiss or American, though, and all hell breaks loose.
—Pete Wells, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024
Of course, all hell breaks loose, and at one point, Dickinson even stumbles on the grave of another poet, William Blake, and the full scope of the preacher’s nightmare comes into focus.
—Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 25 Jan. 2024
When India decides to make a controversial public statement about the movie, all hell breaks loose in Hollywood, especially when India’s reproductive history inspires pro-life advocates to hold her up as a model of motherhood.
—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2024
Patek Philippe is widely regarded as the world’s finest watch manufacturer, but ask a cohort of collectors, retailers, bloggers and auctioneers to come to a consensus on the five best models the firm has introduced since 2000 and all hell breaks loose.
—Victoria Gomelsky, Robb Report, 20 Dec. 2023
When Superman is grown up, suddenly there’s a mass exodus and all hell breaks loose.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 19 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'all hell breaks loose.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“All hell breaks loose.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all%20hell%20breaks%20loose. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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