vote off the island en · VERB
Etymology
Coined with reference to reality game show Survivor, in which contestants must survive after being deliberately stranded in a remote location (such as a tropical island), with one being eliminated from the competition each week by a vote.
Meanings
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(idiomatic, informal) To reject or eliminate.
"Look, I'm thorry." I winced. "Sorry. I'm an idiot, okay? A total jerk. I deserve to be voted off the island. […]
2008, Robin Stevenson, Impossible Things, page 104:At places like Razorfish, the burden of deciding who to vote off the island had brought emotional injury to the middle managers who had been asked to make employee assessments.
2002, Andrew Ross, No-Collar: The Inhumane Workplace and Its Hidden Costs, page 220:I mean, it [rowing] wasn't a varsity sport at most colleges anymore and hadn't been for years. If I got to college and couldn't sustain my studies and crew, there could be only one choice of which I'd vote off the island. I could always pick crew back up after I graduated.
2015, Christopher Koelher, Poz, page 66:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| votes off the island | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| voting off the island | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| voted off the island | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| voted off the island | Tense=Past | lexicographic |