Meaning & use
fizzle
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Meanings
verbintransitiveinformal
To fade away or end in a disappointing way after seeming exciting or likely to succeed.
Grammar: No object; usually followed by out: the plan fizzled out.
Patterns
- fizzle out
The excitement fizzled out when the speaker stopped talking.
Their friendship slowly fizzled after she moved away.
The protest fizzled when heavy rain began to fall.
verbintransitive
To make a soft hissing or bubbling sound, as a drink or a fire that is dying.
Grammar: No object; describes the sound: the water fizzled.
The soda fizzled in the glass.
The match fizzled in the damp grass.
The firework fizzled and went out.
nounsingularinformal
A weak, disappointing end to something that began with promise.
Grammar: Often appears in the phrase fizzle out or as a fizzle.
Patterns
- a fizzle
The grand opening ended in a fizzle.
The comeback tour was a total fizzle.
After weeks of hype, the product launch was a fizzle.
Word forms
| third person singular | fizzles |
|---|---|
| past tense | fizzled |
| past participle | fizzled |
| -ing form | fizzling |
Common combinations
- fizzle out
- The rumors eventually fizzled out.
- fizzle to nothing
- The campaign fizzled to nothing within a month.
- fizzle away
- The fire fizzled away in the rain.
- start to fizzle
- The conversation started to fizzle after dinner.
- gradually fizzle
- Public interest gradually fizzled.
Synonyms and how they differ
- peter out
- Peter out is almost identical in meaning, but it is slightly more informal and mostly describes things that shrink gradually.
- fade
- Fade is gentler and neutral, while fizzle suggests disappointment.
- flop
- Flop is a sudden complete failure, whereas fizzle is a slow loss of energy.
- dwindle
- Dwindle means to get smaller little by little, without the sense of letdown.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: fizzle or sizzle?
fizzle vs sizzle
Sizzle is the sound of frying food, and it can also mean to be exciting, while fizzle means to end weakly.
Practice
The team started the season with great energy, but their enthusiasm began to ____ out by March.
Choose one answer.
Fizzle out means to end weakly after a good start. Flourish and flare describe growth and sudden brightness, the opposite effect.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fizzle”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.