death knell
Farmers said that the latest outbreak of the disease could sound the death knell for the pork industry.
A poor report from the inspectors can sound the death knell for a school.
The arrival of grunge sounded the death knell for hard rock.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Failing and doing badly
abjectly
at-risk
backbencher
balls (something) up
be on your beam endsidiom
blow (someone/something) up
bomb
egg
flog
flog a dead horseidiom
flop
flub
flunk out
founder
mess
running on emptyidiom
sclerotic
screw
screw (something) up
the rot sets inidiom