Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

burn the candle at both ends

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.74 in modern English

Syllables: burn the -can-dle at both- ends
IPA

37

Scrabble Score

23

Letters

4

Syllables

13

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To work hard night and day; to sleep late and wake up early; to overwork or overexert oneself.

verb

To waste or expend resources twice over; to be doubly profligate.

Dated

Example Sentences

"Von Gerhard's face was unsmiling. “So,” he said, slowly. “You burn the candle at both ends. All day you write, is it not so? And at night you come home to write still more? Ach, Kindchen!—Na, we shall change all that. […]"
"I don’t look older, I just look worse, I think. Honestly, when I’m walking down the street, no one’s ever like, “Hey, look at that man!” I think they’re just like “Whoa! That tall child looks terrible! Get some rest, tall child! You can't keep burning the candle at both ends!""
"The dividends […] were divided from capital and not from profit—for, in truth, the concern never earned a penny in the sense in which the term profit is commonly employed. […] The pipe-making concern burned the candle at both ends, and burned it steadily; […]"
"From what I hear, he's a regular dog; he's rolling in money; he's taking three mistresses and a cook along with him. All these great artists burn the candle at both ends; they require a dissolute life, that stirs the imagination to some extent."
"And another thing not to be forgotten is that the expense rate, the cost of production, has kept pace with the reduction in premiums, thus burning the candle at both ends; […]"
"Speaking financially, Mrs. Ormsby had burned the candle at both ends. Her establishment was costly on the one hand; her pleasures costly on the other."

Etymology

Calque of French brûler la chandelle par les deux bouts. First attested in the 18th century, originally in the sense “to be doubly profligate”.

Origin

First known use: First attested in the 18th century

Usage

Dated

Inflected Forms

burns the candle at both ends (present, singular) burning the candle at both ends (participle, present) burned the candle at both ends (participle, past) burned the candle at both ends (past) burnt the candle at both ends (participle, past) burnt the candle at both ends (past) burn one's candle at both ends (alternative)

Phrases

burn the midnight oil not worth the candle the candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long

Frequently Paired Words

burn the midnight oil not worth the candle the candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long

Questions

What does burn the candle at both ends mean?: To work hard night and day; to sleep late and wake up early; to overwork or overexert oneself.
Where does burn the candle at both ends come from?: First known use: First attested in the 18th century.

How to pronounce burn the candle at both ends

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