deep six

Meaning

Verb

To discard, get rid of, or cancel; to completely put an end to something.

Noun

1. Ejection, discardment or destruction.
2. The grave or death; also, the (notional) place where something is discarded.

Translations

الغى

canceln

se désabonner

contremander

cancello

afblazen

cancelar

Etymology

Attested since the 1920s as a noun, most likely from the nautical cry “by the deep six” indicating a depth of 6 fathoms (36 feet, 11 metres) as measured by a sounding line (a depth at which something thrown overboard would be difficult to recover), though possibly also a reference to the common depth of graves (six feet). Attested since the 1950s as a verb.