# live down

CEFR B2 · Phrasal verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/live-down
Updated: 2026-10-22

## Definition

to make people forget an embarrassing mistake you made in the past. You usually use this when you are worried people will always remember something silly you did.

For teachers: To overcome the shame or embarrassment of a past mistake or failure over time. It is frequently used in the negative to suggest that a specific event was so humiliating it will be remembered indefinitely.

## Examples

- I will never live down the time I tripped on stage.
- After calling his boss by the wrong name during the meeting, Mark felt he would never live it down.
- The politician struggled to live down the scandal that had derailed his first campaign, despite his subsequent efforts to reform the local housing laws.

## Pitfalls

- Not "I will never live down from that mistake." but "I will never live that mistake down." — The phrase does not take the preposition 'from'; the mistake or the pronoun 'it' acts as the direct object.

## Usage notes

- Usually takes 'it' as a middle object and is most common in the negative form 'never live it down'.
- Teaching tip: Teach this alongside the concept of 'reputation'; it is a great phrase for discussing social embarrassment and how long people remember mistakes.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.