go belly up
Meaning
To fail completely, especially for a business to go bankrupt or collapse.
Origin
From the image of a dead fish or animal floating with its belly facing upwardβan observable sign that it has died. The figurative sense extended to things (especially businesses) that βdieβ or collapse.
Notes
Informal and vivid. Most often used for companies going bankrupt, but can also describe plans or deals collapsing. Less suitable for formal writing.
Examples
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The restaurant went belly up after rent prices doubled and customers stopped coming.
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If the startup canβt secure funding this quarter, it may go belly up.
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Several small suppliers went belly up when the big retailer canceled its contracts.
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He put all his savings into a company that went belly up within a year.
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The bank stepped in to prevent the regional lender from going belly up.
Grammar & Usage Notes
Usually used as a verb phrase: go belly up / went belly up / has gone belly up. Often with a subject like a company, plan, or deal. Can take adverbs (e.g., suddenly) but the core phrase is fixed.
Synonyms
- go bankrupt
- go under
- fold
- collapse
- fail
Antonyms
- stay afloat
- remain solvent
- succeed
- turn a profit