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Phrase(s): Rats abandon a sinking ship. [and] like rats abandoning a sinking ship Prov. You can tell when something is about to fail because large numbers of people begin to leave it. (Can imply that the people who leave are "rats," that is, selfish and disloyal.) • Jill: The company next door must be going bankrupt. Jane: How do you know? Jill: All its employees are resigning. Rats abandon a sinking ship.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs