English, baby!

简体
go down the tubes
一落千丈

Date: Dec 29 2011

Themes: Pop Culture

Go Super!

Quote

1. Quote - Listen to the quote and guess what the slang means.

Go Super to Listen

“I think the state of reality TV is going down the tubes.”

- Model and reality TV star Kimora Lee Simmons. (BET)

Definition

1. Definition - Study the definition.

Go Super to Listen

turn bad, lose quality, be destroyed

2. Use - Learn how the slang is used.

Go Super to Listen

When something goes down the tubes, it fails, turns bad, or disappears. If your plans go down the tubes, they don’t turn out the way you want. If a couple’s relationship goes down the tubes, it means the couple breaks up. And if reality TV goes down the tubes? It becomes boring, stupid, or just plain bad.
Some might argue that reality TV was never out of the tubes. That is, it has always been bad. But Kimora Lee Simmons, a fashion model who has appeared on reality TV herself in the past, thinks it’s only now starting to go down the tubes.

Can you guess where the expression go down the tubes comes from? It’s similar to go down the drain. If something literally goes down the tubes, it gets flushed or washed away. It travels through metal tubes, or pipes, with other bad stuff that nobody wants anymore.

Do you think television has gone down the tubes lately? What else is going down the tubes?

Examples

1. Examples - Hear some example sentences.

Go Super to Listen

“The NBA star’s career went down the tubes after he injured his knees.”

“I hope my grades don’t go down the tubes this semester.”

“Let’s stop fighting. I don’t want our friendship to go down the tubes.”

Winners

1. Winners - See who guessed the slang definition correctly.

	The meaning is to fail or degenerate rapidly. by candycandice
	to fail or become much worse. by emi0808
	decline by Ahshan
	Getting worse by Manu4
	fading; diminishing by Bitten by an Arab bug
	it means the state of reality TV is going to fail or ruin by kotlesya
	fail or not popular anymore. by CatcheR

Want to guess next week's slang?

Go Super to Ask Ebaby! teachers your questions!

The iTEP^® test

Sponsored by

Schedule an iTEP^® test and take the official English Practice Test.
Take Now >

Comments

1 through 20 of 40
Next >
1 2

julito

Argentina

In ARGENTINA TV is also a bummer:crimes, violence, gossip,reality shows , I am tired of all these crap. I Rely more and more on a few programmes on cable like: Discovery, Science, National Geographic and the like.

Maria del Alba

Spain

I think television is going down the tubes because almost all programs in it are shit related with gossip. It is going to be replaced by another means like Internet or mobile phones where you can get almost all you can and you can find if you search propperly all the points of view and not only one bias.

I also think capitalism is going down the tubes, even though the effort presidents are making in order to make it up; and people are making more and more conscious of the strenght of the demonstrations (see what happened in Africa) and the power they have to change politics. There’s gonna be a change of mentality in 2012 as I think…

julito

Argentina

AUL , kudos to you. !!!!!

AUL

Azerbaijan

again tahnks for your kindness

but about 3 years later i’ll be an english teacher :)

julito

Argentina

AUL, we are not Englishteacher,anyway you are most welcome to ask for clarification ,should you have any doubt. thats what we are here for, to learn from each other and share our feelings among good friends.

AUL

Azerbaijan

yeah really

it isnt my mother tongue thats why sometimes i cant understand something or it is difficult to understand it from first sight

but if it is explained well i understand it

AUL

Azerbaijan

hmmmm…ok

thank you a lot you are very kind

i understand :)

julito

Argentina

AUL , let me put it this way. My business is going down the tubes (failing) I have invested in warm clothes , we are already in winter and the days are so hot.

AUL

Azerbaijan

JUlito it means sth meanlees in our life ? do i understand right?

julito

Argentina

AUL it means: fail to carry on an objective in your life.

AUL

Azerbaijan

i cant understand :(

dopy

Cuba

stands for screw up

abang leak

Indonesia

i wont my plan goes down the tubes….

bonniewang99

China

I don’t be sure if the slang in China ” go to the blind alley” or “go to dead end” is close to it.

Ahshan

China

nice .i have got it again!

andrespretty2

Colombia

yes, I think television has gone down the tubes,’cause in internet you can navegate many pages and to see very interesting programs.

Other thing that is going down the tubes are the careers in horses, before it was something that people supported.

nezar bnj

Morocco

day after day the technologie world invente an new thing in this major that’s mean the new eclipse the old , also this can happen to the state of reality tv which will goes down the tube