undoing
n. uncountablen. the cause of someone's failure or loss of power. It is often a personal weakness or a specific mistake that ruins a person's success.
n. the cause of a person's ruin or downfall. Often refers to a specific character flaw or a singular catastrophic event that reverses previous success.
His pride was his eventual undoing.
The politician's refusal to listen to his advisors proved to be his undoing during the election.
While the company had dominated the market for decades, its failure to adapt to digital trends became its ultimate undoing as more agile competitors emerged.
From Middle English undoinge, undoynge, ondoynge; equivalent to undo + -ing.
From Middle English undoynge, undoand, from Old English undōnde (“undoing”), from Proto-Germanic andadōndz, present participle of andadōną (“to undo”). Cognate with Dutch ontdoend (“undoing”).
Typically used with a possessive pronoun (e.g., 'my undoing', 'their undoing') or in the phrase 'the undoing of'.