go to hell

See also: go-to-hell

English

Etymology

The third sense is first attested in Shakespeare. The second sense is a variation of older go to the devil. The literal sense is attested since Old English with various verbs for "to go".

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌɡəʊ tə ˈhɛl/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌɡoʊ tə ˈhɛl/, [ˌɡoʊ̯‿ɾə ˈhɛɫ]

  • Audio (Mid-Atlantic US):

    (file)

Verb

go to hell (third-person singular simple present goes to hell, present participle going to hell, simple past went to hell, past participle gone to hell)

1. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see go,‎ to,‎ hell.
2. To go out the window; become ruined; become useless.

   Well, that plan has gone to hell.

   • 2024 August 4, George Chidi, quoting Donald Trump, “Name-calling and hyperbole: Trump continues fear-mongering fest at Georgia rally”, in The Guardian‎^[1], →ISSN:

     In my opinion, they want us to lose. If we lose Georgia, we lose the whole thing and our country goes to hell.

   • 2025 September 23, Donald Trump, speech at United Nations:

     I'm really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell. In America, we've taken bold action to swiftly shut down uncontrolled migration. Once we started detaining and deporting everyone who crossed the border and removing illegal aliens from the United States, they simply stopped coming.

3. (derogatory, somewhat offensive) An expression of anger and contempt directed at someone, especially after that individual has committed a serious crime or transgression.

   Why did Nancy do that to Jake? She can go to hell.

   You want me to voluntarily work the weekend without pay? Go to hell!

   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], page 173, line 21:

     Let Fortune goe to hell for it, not I.

   • 1914, Jack London, The Mutiny of the Elsinore, Chapter XLVI:

     I shook my head and held up my rifle. "You'll have to go aloft to do it, and the first man that gets into the shrouds will get this."
     "Then she can go to hell for all we care," he said, with emphatic conclusiveness.

   • 1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:

     "Oh, go to hell!" said Silas, and kicked open his own unlatched door.

Synonyms

• (to be ruined or useless): go out the window, go to pot, go down the drain, go down the toilet
• (go to Hell): go to Halifax
• (in imperative): get fucked

Translations

to be ruined, become useless

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 失效 (zh) (shixiao)

• Danish: gå ad helvede til
• Dutch: naar de klote gaan
• Finnish: mennä päin helvettiä
• French: tomber à l'eau (fr), partir en fumée (fr), partir en couille (fr) (vulgar)
• German: den Bach runtergehen (de)
• Italian: andare al diavolo (it), andare all'inferno
• Malay: pergi mampus
• Polish: psuć się (pl) impf, zepsuć się (pl) pf
• Portuguese: ir por água abaixo, ir ralo abaixo
• Romanian: se duce dracului, se duce dracu', se duce naibii, se duce naiba
• Russian: идет к черту (idet k čertu)
• Swedish: gå åt helvete (sv), gå åt skogen (sv)

interjection

• Bulgarian: върви по дяволите (vǎrvi po djavolite), върви в ада (vǎrvi v ada)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 去死吧 (qù sǐ ba)

• Danish: gå ad helvede til, gå ad Pommern til, ad helvede til (da)
• Esperanto: iru kacen
• Finnish: painu helvettiin
• French: aller se faire voir (fr), va au diable (fr), allez au diable, va mourir
• German: fahr zu Hölle, fahrt zu Hölle pl
• Greek: άντε στο διάολο (ánte sto diáolo)

  Ancient Greek: ἔρρε (érrhe) (imperative of ἔρρω)

• Hebrew: לך לעזאזל (lékh la'azazél)
• Hindi: भाड़ में जाओ (bhāṛ mẽ jāo), भाड़ में जा (bhāṛ mẽ jā)
• Hungarian: menj a pokolba
• Irish: téigh go h-ifreann, téigí go h-ifreann
• Italian: andare al diavolo (it), andare a remengo, andare a cagare, vaffanculo (it)
• Japanese: 死ね (ja) (shine)
• Macedonian: о́ди по ѓаво́лите (ódi po ǵavólite, literally “go to the devils”)
• Malay: pergi mampus
• Norwegian: dra til helvete (no)
• Pannonian Rusyn: идз до чорта (idz do čorta), идз до дябла (idz do djabla), гет до беса (het do besa)
• Polish: idź do diabła
• Portuguese: vá para o inferno!, vai para o inferno!
• Romanian: du-te dracului (ro), du-te dracu', du-te naibii, du-te naiba, (rare) du-te în iad
• Russian: пошёл к чёрту m (pošól k čórtu), пошла́ к чёрту f (pošlá k čórtu), пошли́ к чёрту pl (pošlí k čórtu)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: иди до ђавола, иди у пакао

  Latin: idi do đavola, idi u pakao

• Spanish: ¡vete al infierno!, ¡vete a la mierda!, ¡vete a tomar por culo!
• Swedish: dra åt helvete (sv), fara åt helvete
• Turkish: cehenneme git
• Ukrainian: до бі́са (uk) (do bísa)
• Urdu: بھاڑ میں جاؤ! (bhāṛ meṉ jā'o!), بھاڑ میں جا! (bhāṛ meṉ jā!)
• Welsh: dos i uffern, ewch i uffern
• Yiddish: גיי אין דר׳ערד (gey in dr'erd)

See also

• go to the devil
• go die in a fire
• go jump in a lake
• go jump off a cliff
• go jump off a building
• to hell in a handbasket