to left the building
21
6.5
- phrasal verb
- Informal
:
irse
- As he had done the previous day, he turned and left the building.
- Elvis left the building
- just left the building
- never left the building
Anyway, my brain, it has left the building at this point.
- Anyway, my brain, it has left the building at this point.
- Obviously made a sound and he left the building expecting everyone to evacuate.
- I was, I was shocked and it didn't really hit me until I left the building.
- It's enough to make suspicious minds wonder if Elvis this really did leave the building on that day.
Examples
-
When the fire alarm went off, everyone quickly left the building in a hurry.
-
Do not attempt to leave the building!
-
Sir, I need you to leave the building now.
-
Your father was last to leave the building.
-
Please, sir, leave the building.
-
"Unfortunately, he has left the building and we will never see his like again."
Blog text (3) -
I advise you, now leave the building.
-
"What's wrong with you?" he asked again as they left the building.
Fiction book (1996) -
Then he said he wanted to get some air, and we left the building and sat on a bench.
Fiction book (2002) -
As I left the building, classes were changing and the students were milling about in the halls.
Fiction book (1996)
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To go away from a place, person, or group
709
1.0
To leave a place or person and go somewhere else
176
1.3
To leave a place to start a journey
41
6.3
Go away suddenly without warning or explanation
1
7.9
Leave a place or conversation quietly to avoid attention
Antonyms
How Final
- Informal
1
5.3
- Informal
21
6.5
∞
1.0
234
2.3
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to depart or exit a place' is directly and compositionally derivable from the constituents 'leave' and 'building' (with 'the' as a definite article), so a B1 learner who knows those words will understand the basic sense. While certain cultural uses (e.g., 'Elvis has left the building') add pragmatic nuance of finality or unexpectedness, that is context-dependent and does not make the core phrase opaque.
Etymology
Left the building comes from announcements at concerts. One famous line was 'Elvis has left the building' to tell fans the star had gone, so people pictured someone who had actually left the building. That's why today the phrase means someone has gone and is no longer there.