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Glite Dictionary
to go the way of the dinosaurs

to go the way of the dinosaurs

1 8.2
People stop using something because new things replace it
  • idiom
translation icon : irse como los dinosaurios
  • This obsolete engineering has gone the way of the dinosaur.

Examples

  • They better evolve soon, because they are slowly but surely going the way of the dinosaur.

    Blog text (16)

  • If we don't do something about climate change, we will go the way of the dinosaurs, and we really won't have to worry about anything.

    Blog text (8)

  • "I will not leave this Earth before I see that demotion go the way of the dinosaurs.

    Blog text (30)

  • That model is, in all likelihood, going the way of the dinosaur, writes Wolken.

    Blog text (30)

  • Newspapers and the alphabet news are going the way of the dinosaurs due to their inability to correctly process information, either incoming or outgoing.

    Blog text (32)

  • Text adventures went the way of the dinosaur when video games started supporting graphics beyond blocky depictions of flat landscapes.

    Blog text (30)

  • On the other hand—and I don't mean to be cold here—professional typists also went the way of the dinosaurs a while ago, too.

    Blog text (29)

  • It's going the way of the dinosaur, and if Homo sapiens doesn't reconfigure here, we will go the way of the dinosaur right along with it.

    Blog text (21)

  • With the rise of smartphones, flip phones have gone the way of the dinosaurs.

  • Many traditional retail stores are going the way of the dinosaurs due to the growth of online shopping.

Synonyms

to die out
vsto go the way of the dinosaurs
47 3.7

To stop existing over time, for example animals or traditions

is about becoming obsolete or extinct often because of failing to adapt
to become extinct
vsto go the way of the dinosaurs
15 4.5

Stop existing as a kind of animal, plant, or language

also covers becoming obsolete through failure to adapt over time
to go the way of the dodo
vsto go the way of the dinosaurs
2 8.6

To stop being used and disappear completely

emphasizes loss caused by failure to adapt to change
to fossilize
vsto go the way of the dinosaurs
  • Formal
1 6.8

Become fixed and unable to change, often about ideas or systems

means becoming obsolete or disappearing due to failure to adapt rather than mere rigidity
to obsolesce
vsto go the way of the dinosaurs
8.9

To become old-fashioned and no longer used

can mean full disappearance or extinction, not just falling into disuse

Antonyms

to thrive
241 3.2

To grow well and be successful

How Obsolete

to go the way of the dinosaurs
1 8.2
to obsolete
1 6.0
to fade away
69 3.0

Surface Forms

go the way of the dinosaurs infinitive
went the way of the dinosaurs past
gone the way of the dinosaurs past participle
going the way of the dinosaurs present participle
goes the way of the dinosaurs third person singular

Morphology

go + the + way + of + the + dinosaur

The noun 'dinosaur' clearly signals extinction/obsolescence and 'go' + 'way' gives a basic sense of following a path, so a learner could partly infer the meaning from the parts. However, the construction 'go the way of X' is a metaphorical idiom meaning 'share the fate of X' and that relational/figurative usage is not fully predictable from the constituents, so it is only partially transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Go the way of the dinosaurs comes from the image of dinosaurs, large animals that died out long ago and are now only fossils in museums. So when something goes the way of the dinosaurs it becomes 'extinct' or 'no longer used' because it failed to change.