grind to a halt
idiom
of a machine
: to stop working or moving forward
The machinery slowly ground to a halt.
—often used figurativelyWithout more money, work on the project will soon grind to a halt.
Examples of grind to a halt in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Suddenly, everything else grinds to a halt while people obsess over something that barely matters in the grand scheme.
—
Charles Fallon, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
The procurement ground to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 23 June 2025
The flow restricts and, for a moment, time grinds to a halt.
—Erica Stern
june 9, Literary Hub, 9 June 2025
Photograph: Michael Tessier When the lights went out across the Iberian Peninsula in April, everything ground to a halt.
—Justin Ling, Wired News, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for grind to a halt
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Charles Fallon, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
The procurement ground to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 23 June 2025
The flow restricts and, for a moment, time grinds to a halt.
—Erica Stern
june 9, Literary Hub, 9 June 2025
Photograph: Michael Tessier When the lights went out across the Iberian Peninsula in April, everything ground to a halt.
—Justin Ling, Wired News, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for grind to a halt
Cite this Entry
“Grind to a halt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grind%20to%20a%20halt. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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