albatross around one's neck en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Etymology
From The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798) by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, wherein a sailor's killing of an albatross brings bad luck and results in the dead bird being hung around the killer's neck by his crewmates.
Meanings
-
(figuratively, idiomatic) A characteristic, possession, associate, or previous deed that hinders one's ability to succeed.
Less attention was paid to the albatross that Bain, KKR, and Vornado had placed around the company’s neck. Toys “R” Us had a debt load of $1.86 billion before it was bought out.
2018 June 13, Bryce Covert, “The Demise of Toys 'R' Us Is a Warning”, in The Atlantic, →ISSN:“Marine wants to be French president, and her chance are pretty good for 2027,” said one former senior AfD official. “Why would she want a bunch of German neo-Nazis like an albatross round her neck?”
2024 May 4, Guy Chazan, Leila Abboud, “Le Pen strains ties with German far-right”, in FT Weekend, London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 2:He bought the properties last year hoping to make a profit by reselling them; however, with the economic downturn, they have become an albatross around his neck.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| albatross round one's neck | alternative | lexicographic |
Relateds
millstone around one's neck · monkey on one's back
Translations (6)
fi riippakivi (thing that hinders) · de Klotz am Bein (thing that hinders) · pl kamień u szyi (thing that hinders) · fi riippa (thing that hinders) · fr poids (thing that hinders) · pl kula u nogi (thing that hinders)
wikipedia: Samuel Taylor Coleridge · wikipedia: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner