Meaning: keep at something that’s lost or hopeless. Meaning and uses.
Rewrite 1: flail a dead cat
Rewrite 2: pump a dry well
Rewrite 3: hammerv a buried nail
Rewrite 4: paint a red wall orange

Comment: This may mean something that’s hopeless or an act that’s already finished. I tried to cover both in these rewrites.

More reading about clichés
What I found when I googled “clichés”:
• Odd Thinking: “Treating cliches [sic] like the plague.”

Note: By providing links to other websites I am only showing you what is out there about clichés – I am not endorsing any content or opinion expressed there.

Check out the searchable alphabetical list of all my cliché rewrites available in the archive list at the right.