leave in the lurch

Fig. to leave someone waiting for or anticipating your actions. Where were you, John? You really left me in the lurch. I didn't mean to leave you in the lurch. I thought we had canceled our meeting.

to cause someone to be in a situation in which they do not have what they need Her ex-husband didn't want to deal with the kids, so she was left in the lurch. Factories here that rely on parts from overseas were suddenly left in the lurch when imports were suspended.

to leave someone at a time when they need you to stay and help them I hope they can find someone to replace me at work. I don't want to leave them in the lurch.

Abandon or desert someone in difficult straits. For example, Jane was angry enough to quit without giving notice, leaving her boss in the lurch. This expression alludes to a 16th-century French dice game, lourche, where to incur a lurch meant to be far behind the other players. It later was used in cribbage and other games, as well as being used in its present figurative sense by about 1600.