go bankrupt
/ɡoʊ ˈbæŋkrʌpt/
Meaning
To "go bankrupt" means to become legally declared unable to pay outstanding debts. It is used both formally for legal bankruptcy and informally to describe running completely out of money. It is a neutral phrase suitable for both business contexts and casual financial conversations.
Examples
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The retail giant had to go bankrupt after failing to adapt to online shopping.
The retail giant had to go bankrupt after failing to adapt to online shopping.
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If we don't cut our monthly expenses immediately, we might go bankrupt.
If we don't cut our monthly expenses immediately, we might go bankrupt.
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Many small businesses went bankrupt during the economic recession.
Many small businesses went bankrupt during the economic recession.
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He invested all his life savings into a failing venture and went bankrupt.
He invested all his life savings into a failing venture and went bankrupt.
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The airline is struggling to stay afloat and may be forced to go bankrupt next month.
The airline is struggling to stay afloat and may be forced to go bankrupt next month.
Common Mistakes
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✗ The company became bankrupt last year.
✓ The company went bankrupt last year.
While "became bankrupt" is grammatically understandable, the standard English collocation is "go bankrupt" (past tense: "went bankrupt").
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✗ He went bankruptcy after his business failed.
✓ He went bankrupt after his business failed.
"Bankruptcy" is the noun (e.g., "file for bankruptcy"), whereas "bankrupt" is the adjective used with the verb "go."
Related Expressions
Practice
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The restaurant was forced to ___ because they couldn't pay their rent.
💡 Declare financial insolvency.
Show answer
go bankrupt
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If you keep spending money like this, you are going to ___.
💡 Run out of money completely and be unable to pay debts.
Show answer
go bankrupt