View synonyms for

burn out

verb

to become or cause to become worn out or inoperative as a result of heat or friction
the clutch burnt out
(intr) (of a rocket, jet engine, etc) to cease functioning as a result of exhaustion of the fuel supply
(tr; usually passive) to destroy by fire
to become or cause to become exhausted through overwork or dissipation

noun

the failure of a mechanical device from excessive heating
a total loss of energy and interest and an inability to function effectively, experienced as a result of excessive demands upon one's resources or chronic overwork

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Idioms and Phrases

Stop functioning because something, such as fuel, has been used up. For example, There's nothing wrong with the lamp; the light bulb just burned out . [Late 1300s]

be burned out . Lose one's home, place of work, or school as the result of a fire. For example, Hundreds of tenants are burned out every year because of negligent landlords .

Also, burn oneself out . Make or become exhausted or disaffected, especially with one's work or schooling. For example, Many young lawyers burn themselves out after a few years of 70-hour weeks . This metaphoric term alludes to a fire going out for lack of new fuel. Robert Southey used it in an 1816 essay: “The spirit of Jacobinism was burnt out in France.” [1970s]

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

But despite the success, the band eventually burned out.

From

In January, Foden told the Manchester Evening News, external he had felt physically and mentally burned out.

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“As a creative person, you get burned out by doing the same thing over and over again.”

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Pavement burned out like any other rock band, but a conventional rise-and-fall treatment wouldn’t suit them.

From

We’ll walk past Amoeba sometimes and remember that version of ourselves: me, burned out and bracing for more disappointment; him, trying to heal and rebuild.

From

burnout burn pit

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