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down for the count. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
down for the count, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
down for the count in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
A metaphorical reference to the sport of boxing, where a contestant loses a match if knocked down and unable to get up before a referee has counted to ten.
Pronunciation
Adjective
down for the count (not comparable)
- (idiomatic) Decisively beaten; defeated; rendered irrelevant for the long term.
1912, Harold MacGrath, chapter 7, in The Place of Honeymoons:“But what puts me down for the count is the action of the fellow. Never showed up; just made her miss two performances.”
1991 November 4, Allan Kozinn, “Despite Odds, Many of Them, A Bedeviled Orchestra Persists”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:But every time the music world thought it was down for the count, the orchestra has managed to rise again.
2002 March 11, “Veni, Vidi, Gucci”, in Time, archived from the original on 2013-05-11:So, while Europe is still groggy and the U.S. is just starting to show signs of a pulse (and Japan of course is still down for the count), little Korea will grow anywhere from 3.2% to 6% this year.
- (figurative) Unconscious or sound asleep.
See also