fold one's tent

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English

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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fold one's tent (third-person singular simple present folds one's tent, present participle folding one's tent, simple past and past participle folded one's tent)

  1. (idiomatic) To withdraw, especially in a discreet manner; to disengage; to quit.
    • 1844, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "The Day is Done" (proem to The Waif), lines 41-44,
      And the night shall be filled with music,
      And the cares that infest the day
      Shall fold their tents like the Arabs,
      And as silently steal away.
    • 1982 September 27, “No Mercy for the Sisters”, in Time:
      "I won't quietly fold my tent and go away," snapped Sister Catherine.
    • 1983 December 17, William J. Hutchinson, “Whither Bl/GPA?”, in Gay Community News, volume 11, number 22, page 6:
      Following the failure of the Quilty forces to obtain the BL/GPA endorsement in June, the PAC folded its tents and did not meet again.
    • 2005 January 6, Terry Neal, “Talking Points Live”, in Washington Post, retrieved 10 August 2008:
      There are a good number of Democrats who are unhappy with John Kerry, thinking he folded his tent without a fight.

Synonyms

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