come apart at the seams

Idioms and Phrases

Also, come unglued or unstuck . Become extremely upset; break down. For example, After he lost his job Brad seemed to come apart at the seams or The proposed bank merger is coming unglued , or When her last play flopped she became completely unstuck . This idiom transfers physical to emotional disintegration. [ Slang ; mid-1900s]

Example Sentences

The same team leaders driving stressed employees onward—perhaps promising a light at the end of the tunnel or, more likely, setting wildly high metrics to meet—are themselves starting to come apart at the seams.

From Slate

Meanwhile, waiting in the wings, Donald Trump may try to escape such foreign entanglements and their political cost by reverting to the Republican Party’s historic isolationism, even as he ensures that the former lone superpower of Planet Earth could come apart at the seams in the wake of election 2024.

From Salon

If you needed a long-term formula for disaster in a country threatening to come apart at the seams, it would be hard to imagine a more striking one.

From Salon

The defense had come apart at the seams, losing its way over the final weeks of last season.

From Los Angeles Times

From Day 1, teammates say, the transfer quarterback stepped in with a swagger that lifted the locker room, changing a culture that had previously come apart at the seams.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• flop
• stumble
• wallow