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lost cause

 - 3 dictionary results

lost cause

 
Use lost cause in a Sentence
–noun
a cause that has been defeated or whose defeat is inevitable.
Origin:
1860–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Slang Dictionary
lost cause

  1. n.
    a hopeless or worthless thing or person. : The whole play began to wash out during the second act. It was a lost cause by the third.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Idioms & Phrases

lost cause

A hopeless undertaking, as in Trying to get him to quit smoking is a lost cause. In the 1860s this expression was widely used to describe the Confederacy. [Mid-1800s] Also see losing battle.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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