🗓️ Idiom: Burnt Out (adjective)
💬 Meaning
- Feeling extremely tired and unable to work effectively due to stress or overwork.
- Losing motivation and energy after working too hard for too long.
🧠 Example Sentences
- After months of staying late at the office, she realised she was burnt out and needed a break.
- He decided to take two weeks off to recover from feeling burnt out and restore his work–life balance.
- Many employees become burnt out when they never disconnect from work, even on weekends.
🏛️ Origin
The term “burnt out” originally came from the idea of a fire that has used up all its fuel and stopped burning. It began to be used in the 1970s to describe people who were emotionally or physically exhausted from too much work or stress, especially in high-pressure jobs.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
After working late every night for months, she felt completely ___________.
Answer
burnt out
2. Choose the correct option:
What does “burnt out” mean?
a) Feeling refreshed and full of energy
b) Feeling tired and losing motivation after too much work
c) Starting a new job with excitement
Answer
b) Feeling tired and losing motivation after too much work
3. Change the sentence using “burnt out”:
“She was exhausted after trying to balance work and family for months.”
Answer
She was burnt out after trying to balance work and family for months.
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Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
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