(slang) utterly defeated; ruined. Variation and combination of the phrases down for the thirdtime and down for the count. Down for the thirdtime comes from the idea that a person who is struggling in the water and drowning will submerge, come to the surface and submerge again three times before finally dying. Down for the count comes from the sport of boxing, in which a boxer knocked down by his opponent loses the match unless he canget back on his feet before the referee counts to ten. —Class VIII №1, Approved November 1990