Lose your marbles

Meaning

The idiom "lose your marbles" means to lose one's sanity, composure, or control over a situation. It is often used to describe someone who is behaving erratically or has become unhinged.

Usage

• After hearing the news of his best friend's death, John lost his marbles and started acting strangely.
• When she found out that her boss had lied to her, Sarah lost her marbles and quit her job on the spot.
• The stress of final exams caused Mike to lose his marbles and forget everything he had studied.
• After a long argument with his wife, Tom lost his marbles and went to rehab for anger management.
• When he found out that the team he had been rooting for all season had lost, Kevin lost his marbles and threw a tantrum in front of everyone. The usage of this idiom can vary depending on the context. For example, it can be used to describe someone who has become unhinged due to a traumatic event or a difficult situation. It can also be used to describe someone who is behaving erratically or irrationally in a particular moment.

Roots and History

The origin of the idiom "lose your marbles" is not entirely clear, but it is believed to have originated from the practice of tying leather balls to the tail of horses and other animals to make them hyperactive or unmanageable. In the early days of aviation, pilots used a device called a "marble jar" to measure the amount of fuel they had left in their planes. If a pilot ran out of fuel, they would lose their marbles and crash. Over time, the idiom has evolved to mean something completely different, but it still retains its original meaning of losing one's sanity or control over a situation.

Synonyms in English

• "Lose your mind",
• "go mad",
• "become unhinged",
• "lose your composure"

Synonyms in other languages

• Spanish - "perder la razón" (to lose one's reason)
• French - "perdre la tête" (to lose one's head)
• German - "verirren" (to become confused)
• Russian - "потерять сознание" (to lose consciousness)
• Italian - " perdere la testa" (to lose one's mind)

Similar Idioms

• let bygones be bygones

• lone it

• a bit much