bloom is off the rose

English

Alternative forms

• blush is off the rose

Pronunciation

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Phrase

bloom is off the rose

1. (idiomatic) The person, object, or situation identified in the context has lost its novelty, freshness, appeal, or acceptability.

   Synonym: bloom is off the peach

   • 1921, John Galsworthy, chapter 9, in The Forsyte Saga, Part III:

     The matter was clear as daylight, and would be disposed of in half an hour or so; but during that half-hour he, Soames, would go down to hell; and after that half-hour all bearers of the Forsyte name would feel the bloom was off the rose.

   • 1990 April 8, Sheila Rule, “The World: Quite Enough of Thatcher, or Just a Cyclical Setback?”, in New York Times, retrieved 8 January 2012:

     "Thatcher's style, her arrogance, her kind of assertiveness, have suddenly gone out of fashion," said Ralph Miliband. . . . Outside of Britain, too, the bloom is off the rose. Mrs. Thatcher had a warm relationship with President Ronald Reagan, but her standing with President Bush is less certain.

   • 2007 February 15, Barbara Kiviat, “10 Questions for Carl Icahn”, in Time:

     The bloom is off the rose concerning the imperial CEO. Finally shareholders are becoming incensed by these reprehensible bonuses and severance packages.

2. (idiomatic, business, economics) Business is not going well for a particular identified firm or industry, or the overall economy has taken a downturn.
   • 1987 March 11, Peter J. Boyer, “Shop-at-Home Program Fails to Show and Tell”, in New York Times, retrieved 8 January 2012:

     "I would say that the bloom is off the rose a little bit, yes," said the senior vice president of video retailing for Lorimar Telepictures, Peter Temple, speaking of the home-shopping phenomenon.

   • 2000 February 14, Margaret Popper, “Venture Capitalist Michael Frank: "The Cost of Playing Poker Has Simply Gone Up"”, in Businessweek, retrieved 8 January 2012:

     "I think that for general advertising, the bloom is off the rose. That is a declining revenue model."

Usage notes

• Many variations exist in which another term is substituted for rose. Some examples:

• 1905, Andrew Lang, The Puzzle of Dickens's Last Plot:

  [S]he and Edwin are on uncomfortable terms: she does not love him, while he perhaps does love her, but is annoyed by her manner, and by the gossip about their betrothal. "The bloom is off the plum" of their prearranged loves, he says.

• 1971 December 15, Vernon Scott, “New Breed of Film Stars Taking Over For ‘Matrons’”, in Pittsburgh Press, retrieved 8 January 2012:

  Brigitte Bardot, Requel Welch, Sophia Loren and Shirley MacLaine . . . may be splendid actresses or sex symbols but the bloom is off the peach.

References

• “bloom is off the rose”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.