Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

go down the tubes

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.93 in modern English

Syllables: go -down the -tubes
IPA

24

Scrabble Score

14

Letters

3

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

Synonym of go down the toilet: to fail; to degenerate rapidly.

American usage

Example Sentences

"The entire plan went down the tubes when they found they couldn't get strawberries in December."
"Meanwhile, Susan's own workplace shut down, and she found herself "on the street with no job and a two-year-old kid. I was trying my damndest and I was going right down the tubes.""

Usage

American usage

Inflected Forms

goes down the tubes (present, singular) going down the tubes (participle, present) went down the tubes (past) gone down the tubes (participle, past) go down the tube (alternative)

Synonyms

go down the toilet

Questions

What does go down the tubes mean?: Synonym of go down the toilet: to fail; to degenerate rapidly.

How to pronounce go down the tubes

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