Etymology Journal · H
Hell in a handbasket
Meaning
- To go to hell in a handbasket is to descend into chaos or fail spectacularly. It suggests a situation is deteriorating quickly and there is nothing to be done about it.
Pessimistic, dramatic
Used in a sentence
- Ever since the manager quit, the whole office is going to hell in a handbasket.
- If we do not fix these brakes, this car is going to hell in a handbasket.
- The local sports team has gone to hell in a handbasket since the star player left.
The backstory
This phrase has been around since the 1800s, though its exact origin is murky. Some think it refers to the way heads were allegedly carried in baskets to the guillotine during the French Revolution, but that remains unproven.
Heard in
Nationwide
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