bitter end
The end of a long and difficult process.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“They fought to the bitter end to win the game.”
“Even though the project was failing, the team worked to the bitter end to finish their tasks.”
“Despite the overwhelming odds against their cause, the soldiers remained at their posts, determined to resist until the bitter end.”
The figurative usage is influenced by bitter (“unpleasant, arduous”). Indeed, the phrase has been reinterpreted by most today as bitter + end—compare bitter cold.
- 01
all ends up
Completely; totally.
- 02
arse end of nowhere
A very remote place.
- 03
big end of town
The top end of town.
- 04
burn the candle at both ends
To work hard night and day; to sleep late and wake up early; to overwork or overexert oneself.
- 05
business end
The part of an object (chiefly a tool or weapon) that is physically used for its operation, rather than some other part such as the part by which it is held.
- 06
come to a sticky end
To die unpleasantly due to one's actions.
- 07
come to an end
To stop; to cease; to no longer continue.
- 08
dead end
A street or path or tunnel that goes nowhere or is blocked on one end.
Last updated August 10, 2026