go under

verb

went under; gone under; going under; goes under

intransitive verb

1

: sink entry 1 sense 1a

The ship went under in the storm.

2

: to be overwhelmed, destroyed, or defeated : fail

The company went under during the recession.

Examples of go under in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Of the dozen properties that went under contract, two were condos and 10 were single-family homes. — Catherine Odom, Miami Herald, 18 Aug. 2026

After helping her son reach another family member, police said Khalimendik went under the water. — Sabrina Franza, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026

Park founder Walt Disney led a major overhaul before his death in 1966, and the land again went under scaffolding in the late ‘90s. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026

Antone went under the knife for another revision of his elbow surgery in 2024. — C. Trent Rosecrans, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1820, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for go under

• asunder
• blunder
• bunder
• funder
• plunder
• sunder
• thunder