run out of steam
run out of steam (metaphor)
/ˌrʌn aʊt əv ˈstiːm/
Synopsis
The idiom “run out of steam” means to lose energy or momentum, a metaphor drawn from steam engines that stopped when pressure failed. It emerged in American English in the late nineteenth century and quickly became a common figurative expression for human or organizational fatigue.
Meanings
- To lose energy, motivation, or enthusiasm and be unable to continue.
- Lose the effect that something once had.
- To lose momentum or effectiveness after a strong start.
- To fail slowly.
- Come to an end because effort, ideas, time, or resources are exhausted.
Synonyms: lose momentum; burn out; peter out; fizzle out; tire out; fall flat.
Example Sentences
- After starting with strong energy and high confidence, the company ran out of steam and could not continue at the same pace.
- After months of overtime, the team finally ran out of steam and productivity dropped.
- The marketing push ran out of steam once public interest faded.
- The plan ran out of steam when funding was unexpectedly cut.
- The old engine slowed to a halt after it ran out of steam (literal).
Origin and History
Industrial Roots of the Expression
The idiom “run out of steam” originates in the age of steam-powered machinery, when engines relied entirely on steam pressure to operate. In early industrial engines, once the boiler lost heat or pressure, the machine slowed and eventually stopped. This literal failure of power created a vivid and easily understood image of energy depletion, which later became the foundation for figurative use.
Metaphorical Expansion
As steam technology became central to everyday life, the language surrounding it naturally broadened. Speakers began applying the idea of steam loss to human effort, motivation, and effectiveness. The phrase came to describe situations in which enthusiasm fades, progress slows, or an endeavor cannot be sustained, mirroring the visible decline of a steam engine losing pressure.
Geographic Emergence
The idiom first took hold in the United States during the late nineteenth century. This period coincided with the widespread presence of steam locomotives, factories, and industrial equipment in American life. Because steam power was both familiar and dominant, the metaphor resonated strongly with American English speakers and entered common usage there before spreading more widely.
Earliest Figurative Record
One of the earliest known figurative appearances of “run out of steam” occurs in an American newspaper published in January 1898. In this context, the phrase described a person’s hope that another speaker would exhaust her force or material, clearly demonstrating that the expression had already moved beyond machinery and into metaphorical language by the end of the nineteenth century. It reads:
“I stood it for a little while in hope she would run out of steam or material, but she gathered force as she went.”
Semantic Stabilization
By the early twentieth century, the figurative meaning of “run out of steam” was firmly established. While the literal sense tied to steam engines remained technically valid, everyday usage increasingly favored the metaphorical meaning—loss of energy, momentum, or effectiveness. As steam power itself faded from daily life, the idiom endured, preserving the imagery of the industrial era within modern language.
Enduring Usage
Today, “run out of steam” is primarily understood as a metaphor describing human, organizational, or conceptual fatigue rather than mechanical failure. Its continued relevance demonstrates how industrial-age experiences shaped enduring idiomatic expressions, allowing historical technology to live on through language even after its practical dominance has passed.
Variants
- lose steam
- run out of gas
- run out of energy
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