like rats abandoning a sinking ship
With great haste and having only personal well-being in mind. (Typically said of people who begin abandoning something or someone that is failing or about to fail.) I knew the business was doomed when employees started quitting en masse, like rats abandoning a sinking ship. Like rats abandoning a sinking ship, the disgraced athlete's corporate sponsors began pulling their sponsorships one after another.
with wild abandon
With rash, unrestrained impulsiveness, enthusiasm, or zeal. Ever since my brother got that car for his birthday, he's been motoring around at night with wild abandon. The insurgents set upon the town and began firing their weapons with wild abandon.
with reckless abandon
With rash, unrestrained impulsiveness, enthusiasm, or zeal. Ever since my brother got that car for his birthday, he's been motoring around at night with reckless abandon. The insurgents set upon the town and began firing their weapons with reckless abandon.
abandon hope, all ye who enter here
A message warning one about a hopeless situation from which there is no return. The Italian version of this phrase appears in Dante's Divine Comedy as the inscription on the entrance to Hell. The phrase is most often used humorously. I'll never forget my first day as an intern and the sign above my cubicle that said, "Abandon all hope, all ye who enter here."
abandon (oneself) to
To allow oneself to enjoy something fully. On the chilly fall day, Maria abandoned herself to the comforts of hot tea and a warm blanket.
abandon ship
1. Literally, to escape from a sinking ship. We had to abandon ship after the collision with the rocks tore a hole in the hull.
2. By extension, to leave a failing organization or bad situation. Amid rumors that the company was filing for bankruptcy, the employees started to abandon ship.
Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.
Prov. If you come in, be prepared for the worst. (Describes a hopeless situation or one somehow similar to hell. Often used jocularly. This is the English translation of the words on the gate of Hell in Dante's Inferno.) This is our cafeteria. Abandon hope, all ye who enter here!
abandon oneself to something
to yield to the comforts or delights of something. The children abandoned themselves to the delights of the warm summer day.
abandon ship
1. Lit. to leave a sinking ship. The captain ordered the crew and passengers to abandon ship.
2. . Fig. to leave a failing enterprise. A lot of the younger people are abandoning ship because they can get jobs elsewhere easily.
abandon someone or something to someone or something
to leave a person, living creature, or thing to the care of someone or something; to give up someone or something to someone or something. (Usually with the thought that the abandoned person or thing will not receive the best of care.) They had to abandon the dogs to the storm.
Rats abandon a sinking ship.
and like rats abandoning a sinking shipProv. 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.