grind to a halt

phrase

of a machine
: to stop working or moving forward
The machinery slowly ground to a halt.
—often used figuratively
Without more money, work on the project will soon grind to a halt.

Examples of grind to a halt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Several have commented on improved performance since the new developers took charge, with improved frame rates and the ability to load bigger cities without the simulation grinding to a halt. — Barry Collins, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026 Any interesting chemical reactions enclosed there would eat through the raw materials and grind to a halt. — ArsTechnica, 2 July 2026 The ceasefire prompted a surge in crude shipments through the vital waterway where traffic had largely ground to a halt during the conflict, sending oil prices sharply lower. — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 1 July 2026

Rhymes for grind to a halt

See All Rhymes for grind to a halt

Browse Nearby Words

grindstone
grind to a halt
grin from ear to ear
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Grind to a halt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grind%20to%20a%20halt. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Top Lookups
  • 1
    existential
  • 2
    happy
  • 3
    enigma
  • 4
    culture
  • 5
    didactic
  • 6
    pedantic
  • 7
    love

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of quid pro quo

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 17
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All