1
general::
Phrase(s): go under
1. to sink beneath the surface of the water. • After capsizing, the ship went under very slowly. • I was afraid that our canoe would go under in the rapidly moving water. 2. Fig. [for something] to fail. • The company went under exactly one year after it opened. • We tried to keep it from going under. 3. Fig. to become unconscious from anesthesia. • After a few minutes, she went under and the surgeon began to work. • Tom went under and the operation began., Phrase(s): go under (someone or something)
1. to pass beneath someone or something. • The boats went under us as we stood on the bridge. • The boat went under the bridge. 2. to belong beneath someone or something. • That box goes under the bed. • All the Christmas presents go under the tree after the children are asleep.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
1. Suffer defeat or destruction; fail. For example, We feared the business would go under after the founder died. [Mid-1800s] 2. Lose consciousness. For example, Ether was the first anesthetic to make patients go under quickly and completely. This usage dates from the 1930s. 3. Submerge, sink, as in This leaky boat is about to go under.
American Heritage Idioms