burn one's bridges
To destroy one's path, connections, reputation, opportunities, etc., particularly…To destroy one's path, connections, reputation, opportunities, etc., particularly intentionally.
Meaning
1 senses(idiomatic)To destroy one's path, connections, reputation, opportunities, etc., particularly intentionally.
alle Brücken hinter sich abbrechen
сжига́ть все мосты́, рва́ть все свя́зиrvátʹ vse svjázi
Translations
7 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
Originally in the military sense of intentionally cutting off one's own retreat (burning aOriginally in the military sense of intentionally cutting off one's own retreat (burning a bridge one has crossed) to commit oneself to a course of action, later used primarily to mean alienate former friends.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
burns one's bridges, burning one's bridges, burned one's bridges, burned one's bridges| Base form | burn one's bridges · to burn one's bridges |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | burns one's bridges |
| Present participle | burning one's bridges |
| Past simple | burned one's bridges / burnt one's bridges |
| Past participle | burned one's bridges / burnt one's bridges |
irregular · Lesson
Synonyms
1 synonymsWord family
3 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, irregular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.