in den Sand setzen

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German

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Etymology

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Literally, to put in the sand.

Pronunciation

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  • Audio:(file)

Verb

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in den Sand setzen (weak, third-person singular present setzt in den Sand, past tense setzte in den Sand, past participle in den Sand gesetzt, auxiliary haben)

  1. (idiomatic, transitive) (of a project) to botch; (of money) to waste, to burn
    • 2009, Der Spiegel[1], number 9/2009, page 29:
      Der damalige Bundeskanzler hatte dem Unternehmen Bürgschaften und Darlehen in Höhe von 128 Millionen Euro zugesagt, nachdem es Milliarden in den Sand gesetzt hatte
      The former chancellor had promised guarantees and loans amounting to 128 million euros to the company, after they had burned billions

Conjugation

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