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
Ticket sales nearly ground to a halt without any new releases, as well as the misfortune of the spooky holiday landing on Friday (meaning families were trick-or-treating, not visiting their local movie theater).
—
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 2 Nov. 2025
Trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan has ground to a halt as major border crossings remain closed.
—NPR, 31 Oct. 2025
Meanwhile, defense attorneys for criminal defendants who cannot afford lawyers have already seen months go by without pay due to an early depletion of funds appropriated for them, and plaintiffs challenging government policies have sometimes seen their cases slow down or grind to a halt.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 29 Oct. 2025
Businesses lose access to vital services, communication stalls, and productivity grinds to a halt.
—Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for grind to a halt
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 2 Nov. 2025
Trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan has ground to a halt as major border crossings remain closed.
—NPR, 31 Oct. 2025
Meanwhile, defense attorneys for criminal defendants who cannot afford lawyers have already seen months go by without pay due to an early depletion of funds appropriated for them, and plaintiffs challenging government policies have sometimes seen their cases slow down or grind to a halt.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 29 Oct. 2025
Businesses lose access to vital services, communication stalls, and productivity grinds to a halt.
—Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 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 14 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share