albatross around one's neck

English

Coleridge's Ancient Mariner (engraving by Gustave Doré, 1876)

Alternative forms

• (UK) albatross round one's neck

Etymology

From The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798) by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, wherein a sailor's killing of an albatross brings bad luck and results in the dead bird being hung around the killer's neck by his crewmates.

Pronunciation

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Noun

albatross around one's neck

1. (idiomatic, figurative) A characteristic, possession, associate, or previous deed that hinders one's ability to succeed.

   He bought the properties last year hoping to make a profit by reselling them; however, with the economic downturn, they have become an albatross around his neck.

   • 2018 June 13, Bryce Covert, “The Demise of Toys 'R' Us Is a Warning”, in The Atlantic‎^[1], →ISSN:

     Less attention was paid to the albatross that Bain, KKR, and Vornado had placed around the company’s neck. Toys “R” Us had a debt load of $1.86 billion before it was bought out.

   • 2024 May 4, Guy Chazan, Leila Abboud, “Le Pen strains ties with German far-right”, in FT Weekend, page 2:

     “Marine wants to be French president, and her chance are pretty good for 2027,” said one former senior AfD official. “Why would she want a bunch of German neo-Nazis like an albatross round her neck?”

Translations

thing that hinders

• Finnish: riippakivi (fi), riippa (fi)
• French: poids (fr) m
• German: Klotz am Bein m
• Polish: kamień u szyi (pl)

See also

• a millstone round one's neck
• monkey on one's back