abandon all hope
/əˈbændən ɔːl hoʊp/
Meaning
This phrase means to completely stop hoping or expecting that a situation will improve. Originating from Dante's Inferno, it is used in modern English either in very serious, tragic contexts or, more commonly, in a dramatic or humorous way to describe a highly frustrating or impossible situation.
Examples
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When the engine failed in the middle of the desert, they began to abandon all hope of arriving on time.
When the engine failed in the middle of the desert, they began to abandon all hope of arriving on time.
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As the deadline approached and the system crashed again, we abandoned all hope of finishing tonight.
As the deadline approached and the system crashed again, we abandoned all hope of finishing tonight.
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Abandon all hope, ye who enter here, because this DMV line is going to take hours!
Abandon all hope, ye who enter here, because this DMV line is going to take hours!
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After searching for his lost keys for three hours, he abandoned all hope of finding them.
After searching for his lost keys for three hours, he abandoned all hope of finding them.
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The team seemed to abandon all hope of winning after the opponent scored their fourth goal.
The team seemed to abandon all hope of winning after the opponent scored their fourth goal.
Common Mistakes
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✗ He abandoned all of hopes when he failed the test.
✓ He abandoned all hope when he failed the test.
'Hope' in this idiom is used as an uncountable noun in the singular form.
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✗ Don't abandon the hope yet.
✓ Don't abandon all hope yet.
The fixed idiom is 'abandon all hope,' not 'abandon the hope.'
Related Expressions
Practice
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When the rain started pouring on our outdoor wedding, we had to ___ of a sunny ceremony.
💡 completely stop hoping
Show answer
abandon all hope
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Once the rescue team saw the collapsed cave entry, they began to ___ of finding survivors.
💡 give up all expectations of a good outcome
Show answer
abandon all hope