crash and burn

phrase

US, informal

: to fail completely

The company crashed and burned after only two years in business.

Examples of crash and burn in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Nick Saban did a similar U-turn, going back to LSU as the Alabama head coach after a crash and burn in the NFL. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

Why would Chinese companies invest so much money and time into creating robots that perform such athletic feats (and crash and burn afterwards)? — Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026

That’s because, despite your best attempts, some things are destined to crash and burn. — Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026

Similar robots, especially those built for such specific purposes, however, may crash and burn (literally) when faced with the unexpectedness of human life—even in tasks as basic as folding laundry. — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 25 Aug. 2026