after me, the deluge
Meaning: I don't care what happens after I am gone.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “The CEO took his bonus and left the debts behind: after me, the deluge.”
Category: Daily Life
Origin: The French Après nous, le déluge is attributed to Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV, around 1757, though the attribution is not certain. The deluge is the biblical Flood.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Après moi le déluge — literally: After me, the flood
More idioms — Daily Life
- slow on the uptake — Slow to understand.
- kiss something goodbye — To accept that one has lost something or will never get it.
- set one's sights on — To decide to try to get or achieve something.
- God forbid — Used to say that one hopes something bad will not happen.
- kill them all and let God sort them out — A grim or joking call to act ruthlessly without distinguishing innocent from guilty.
- play hooky — To skip school or work without permission.
More English idioms
- lie through one's teeth — To lie openly and shamelessly.
- a little bird told me — I learned it from a secret source I won't name.
- put one's feet up — To relax and rest.
- blow a gasket — To lose one's temper completely.
- hearts and flowers — Excessive sentimentality.
- sing someone's praises — To praise someone enthusiastically.
From our proverbs
- A bird can roost upon but one branch. — Individual focus and commitment matter more than scattered efforts across multiple simult…
- He that will not be ruled by the rudder must be ruled by the rock. — Ignoring gentle guidance leads inevitably to destruction, as a ship resisting the helm cr…
- The fairest rose at last is withered. — Even the most beautiful things inevitably decline and fade with time.