[give] up the ghost

to stop living

The idiom "give up the ghost" can be traced back to the Bible, particularly in the King James Version of the New Testament, where it is used in the Book of Matthew to describe the moment of death. It means to cease living or functioning.

After a long battle with illness, the elderly man peacefully gave up the ghost in his sleep.
The old car finally sputtered and gave up the ghost, leaving its owner stranded on the side of the road.
When the power went out during the storm, all the electronic devices in the house gave up the ghost.
The ancient computer struggled to keep up with modern software and eventually gave up the ghost, refusing to start.
The marathon runner pushed himself to the limit and collapsed as he crossed the finish line, seemingly ready to give up the ghost.

同义词：

pop off exit buy the farm decease drop dead cash in one's chips choke die expire go pass conk snuff it perish croak pass away kick the bucket

反义词：

be born

(of a machine) to fail to work properly

The idiom "give up the ghost" finds its origin in religious and biblical references, specifically from the King James Version of the Bible. The phrase is derived from the concept of the soul or spirit departing from a person's body upon death. It is now used metaphorically to describe the moment when a machine, device, or mechanical system ceases to function properly or completely fails. The expression implies that the machine has reached the end of its operational life or has become irreparably damaged, likening its failure to the final departure of the soul from a deceased body.

My old car finally gave up the ghost; it stopped running altogether and couldn't be fixed.
The ancient printer in the office gave up the ghost, leaving us unable to print any documents.
After years of reliable service, the washing machine finally gave up the ghost and had to be replaced.
The computer's hard drive started making strange noises before it eventually gave up the ghost, resulting in the loss of all data.
The old refrigerator in the kitchen finally gave up the ghost, leaving the food inside to spoil.

to put an stop to an activity one knows has very little or no chance of achieving success

All I'd cherished from early childhood had been denied me, so I simply gave up the ghost.