go up in flames

verb — 2 senses

go up in flames

verb

1

Idiomatic To catch fire.

2

Figuratively, Idiomatic To be cancelled or ruined without any hope of return.

This world / Is going up in flames / And nobody / Wanna take the blame2007, “The World (Is Going Up in Flames)”, performed by Charles Bradley ft. Menahan Street Band:

Related terms: aflame, go down in flames, in flames

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.