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The meaning and origin of the expression: As dead as a doornail

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As dead as a doornail

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Dead, devoid of life (when applied to people, plants or animals). Finished with, unusable (when applied to inanimate objects).


This is old - at least 14th century. There's a reference to it in print in 1350, a translation by William Langland of the French poem Guillaume de Palerne:

"For but ich haue bote of mi bale I am ded as dorenayl."

Langland also used the expression in the much more famous poem The Vision of William Concerning Piers Plowman, circa 1362:

[Faith without works is feebler than nothing, and dead as a doornail.]

The expression was in widespread colloquial use in England by the 16th century, when Shakespeare gave these lines to the rebel leader Jack Cade in King Henry VI, Part 2, 1592:


As dead as a doornail There are several 'as dead as...' idioms, amongst the most notable examples being 'as dead as a dodo' and 'as dead as mutton'. Dodos and mutton are unquestionably dead, but why doornails are cited as a particular example of deadness isn't so obvious.

Doornails are the large-headed studs that were used in earlier times for strength and more recently as decoration. The practice was to hammer the nail through and then bend the protruding end over to secure it. This process, similar to riveting, was called clenching. This may be the source of the 'deadness', as such a nail would be unusable afterwards.

Dickens was among the celebrated authors who liked the phrase and made a point of musing on it in A Christmas Carol

Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail.


Doornails have been top of the 'as dead as' pops since the 1300s. Perhaps it's time for a 21st century upgrade? Given the ubiquity of digital downloads, I'll put in an early bid for 'as dead as a DVD'.

See other 'as x as y similes'.

See other phrases and sayings from Shakespeare.