← Close Menu
ENGLISH LESSONS
English Speaking Courses
English Conversation
Basic ESL Course
ESL Listening Lessons
English Vocabulary
English Grammar Course
Cultural English Lessons
Full Lesson Index
EXTRAS
Video Instructions
English Speaking Articles
Download Offline Version
Throw in the towel
Play / pause
JavaScript is required.
0:00
0:00
volume
< previous
> next
Meaning/Usage
: Give up; quit; surrender
Explanation
: When a boxer was getting beaten so badly, the coach or manager would throw a towel in to stop the fight. This phrase can be used outside of boxing to simply express quitting.
"
I was ready to
throw in the towel
, but I stayed with it.
"
"
He's not a quitter, so he's not going to
throw in the towel
.
"
"
I saw a fight last almost two hours before one guy
threw in the towel
.
"
A:
"
The boxing match is great.
"
B:
"
One guy is really getting beat up.
"
A:
"
Do you think he's going to give up?
"
B:
"
He's not going to
throw in the towel
, they rarely do that these days.
"
Other Common Sentences
"
There's no chance for me to win. I'm calling it quits.
"
"
I don't think I can win, so I'm going to give up.
"
"
I'd rather surrender than get the hell beaten out of me.
"