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burnt

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get (one's) fingers burned

To suffer an unpleasant or ruinous consequence (especially the loss of money) for some action, often such that one becomes unwilling or uneager to do it again. During the boom times, countless would-be investors put everything they owned in shady investment deals, and most of them ended up getting their fingers badly burned.

See also: burn, finger, get

a burnt child dreads the fire

Someone who has experienced some kind of negative situation or consequence will try to avoid making the same mistake or experiencing the same situation again. Joseph refuses to invest any money after losing his retirement fund during the stock market crash; a burnt child dreads the fire.

See also: burnt, child, fire

If you play with fire, you get burnt

A warning that dangerous or risky actions often lead to pain and injury. It's no surprise that Jeff ended up in jail after getting involved in that counterfeiting scheme. If you play with fire, you get burnt. Asking out Dave's ex-boyfriend seems like a bad idea. If you play with fire, you get burnt, you know?

See also: burnt, get, if, play

be burnt to a crisp

To be or have been significantly burned, as by fire or the sun. The variant spelling "burned" is also commonly used in the headword. If you don't get the bread out of the oven now, it will be burnt to a crisp! I fell asleep on the beach, and now I'm burnt to a crisp.

See also: burnt, crisp

A burnt child dreads the fire.

Prov. If something has hurt you once, you avoid it after that. (See also .) Jill: Let's go ride the roller coaster! Jane: No, thanks. I got sick on one of those once, and a burnt child dreads the fire. Ever since Cynthia rebuffed me so rudely, I've avoided asking her for anything; a burnt child dreads the fire.

See also: burnt, child, fire

eyes like two burnt holes in a blanket

Rur. eyes with dark circles around them. I can tell you ain't slept. You got eyes like two burnt holes in a blanket.

See also: blanket, burnt, eye, hole, like, two

burn your fingers

also get (your fingers) burned

to have a bad result from something, esp. to lose money Many investors burned their fingers on those stocks. The museum has gotten burned on several paintings purchased recently that have turned out to be fakes.

See also: burn, finger

be burnt to a crisp

  (mainly British) also be burned to a crisp (mainly American)

to be very burnt By the time I remembered the pizza was in the oven, it was burnt to a crisp.

See also: burnt, crisp

burn your fingers

  also have/get your fingers burned/burnt

to suffer unpleasant results of an action, especially loss of money, so you are not keen to try the same thing again Many investors burn their fingers when they are tempted by get-rich-quick schemes. Several art dealers got their fingers burned on old master paintings that later turned out to be fakes.

See also: burn, finger

burned out

and burnt out

1. mod. tired; bored. I’m burned out after all that partying.

2. mod. having to do with the ruined veins of an addict. (Drugs.) My veins are burnt out so I shoot in the jug.

3. mod. ruined by marijuana smoking. (see also burnout.) What’s left for these burned out kids?

4. mod. no longer affected by a particular drug. (Drugs.) It’s no good. I’m just burned out. The stuff doesn’t affect me at all.

See also: burn, out

burnt out

verb

See burned out

See also: burnt, out