to pick up one's marbles and go home
1
9.9
- idiom
- Informal
:
retirarse
- Sometimes, when negotiations stall, one side will pick up their marbles and go home.
Examples
-
Rather than compromise, she chose to pick up her marbles and go home, leaving the team in a difficult position.
-
After losing the debate, he decided to pick up his marbles and go home instead of continuing the conversation.
-
Don't pick up your marbles and go home just because you lost!
-
Why do you always pick up your marbles and go home when things don't go your way?
-
After losing the game, he decided to pick up his marbles and go home rather than engage in more arguments.
-
Feeling frustrated with the constant disagreements, she chose to pick up her marbles and go home.
-
When the project failed to meet his expectations, he simply picked up his marbles and went home.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To go away from a place, person, or group
683
3.7
To stop doing something you once did
632
3.5
Leave a person, place, or situation without taking part anymore
466
2.8
To stop taking part in a place or activity
356
2.8
Move away from someone, or stop taking part in something
206
3.4
To stop being involved in an activity or agreement
164
3.1
To leave a meeting or event suddenly to show you disagree
112
3.4
Leave a place suddenly because you are angry or protesting
59
3.9
Stop supporting or taking part in a plan because you feel unsure
37
3.5
To leave a place suddenly to show you are angry or upset
37
8.1
Tell someone to leave in a rude way
34
3.9
To stop doing something because you cannot continue or feel you have done enough
20
4.9
To stop doing a job or role politely
12
7.7
Leave a place quickly, often in a rude way
10
4.9
Leave a person because they are angry with you
2
9.3
Leave a game or group angrily because you did not get your way
1
9.9
To leave a place quickly because you do not want to be there
Leave a meeting or project because you are upset
Leave a place after a bad experience and not return
To leave a place quickly, often to avoid trouble
To leave a place suddenly, usually to go somewhere else
To stop trying because it seems pointless
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
pick + up + one + marbles + and + go + home
The literal components ('pick up one's marbles' = collect one's toys/possessions; 'go home' = leave) give a clear image of someone leaving, so a learner could infer a basic sense of departing. However, the idiomatic pragmatic meaning — withdrawing in protest or sulking because one didn't get one's way — is culturally grounded and not fully predictable from the parts, so full comprehension at B1 without prior exposure is unlikely.
Etymology
The idiom pick up one's marbles and go home comes from children playing marbles: when a child was losing or angry, they would literally pick up their marbles and go home, ending the game. So the phrase now means 'to leave a situation because you are angry or did not get your way'.