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Glite Dictionary
to cross the Rubicon

to cross the Rubicon

2 8.5
To take a decisive action that you cannot change later
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : cruzar el Rubicón
  • Deciding to quit my job without another lined up is like crossing the Rubicon; there's no turning back now.
  • Caesar crossed the Rubicon

Examples

  • In September 1988, Deng crossed the Rubicon by calling for price and wage reform.

    Academic text (1998)

  • I think what they're trying to say, Elizabeth, is that we've all just crossed the Rubicon.

    Dracula II: Ascension (2003)

  • We have truly crossed the Rubicon.

    Blog text (28)

  • We have crossed the Rubicon.

    Blog text (15)

  • "It's pretty clear that they crossed the Rubicon in 1950." The next campaign was an advance on the public school system.

    Academic text (2004)

  • So far, it's been all talk; none of them have crossed the Rubicon by calling for an actual major policy shift, even on immigration reform.

    Blog text (18)

  • When she decided to start her own business, she felt that she had crossed the Rubicon in her career.

  • By voting in favor of the controversial policy, the council members crossed the Rubicon and committed themselves to significant changes.

Synonyms

to throw one's cap over the windmill
vsto cross the Rubicon
  • Archaic
9.9

To make a big decision you cannot change that may be risky

is a decisive irreversible step stressing commitment more than bold risk
to throw one's hat over the wall
vsto cross the Rubicon
  • UK
9.9

To decide to start something difficult and not change your mind

stresses irreversible commitment rather than the action's challenge
to throw one's hat over the fence
vsto cross the Rubicon
  • Informal
9.4

To decide to do something difficult and not stop

focuses on a single irreversible decision rather than continued persistence

Antonyms

to hesitate
318 2.5

To pause before saying or doing something because you feel unsure

to retract
  • Formal
41 6.0

To take back a statement or opinion in public

Surface Forms

cross the Rubicon infinitive
crossed the Rubicon past
crossed the Rubicon past participle
crossing the Rubicon present participle
crosses the Rubicon third person singular

Morphology

cross + the + Rubicon

This phrase is a historical allusion (Julius Caesar crossing the Rubicon) whose idiomatic sense of an irreversible, decisive step depends on cultural knowledge rather than transparent composition. A B1 learner who only knows the literal meanings of 'cross' and the proper name 'Rubicon' would not reliably infer the metaphorical meaning, so the expression is not predictable from its parts.

Etymology

The verb cross the Rubicon comes from a famous moment in Roman history. In 49 BC, Julius Caesar led his army across the small river Rubicon, a border he was not allowed to pass, and that action started a civil war and could not be undone. So today cross the Rubicon means 'to take a decisive and irreversible step'.