Going to hell in a handbasket is defined as a situation, a place, or a person, or an object headed for disaster inescapably and/or precipitately. When used to describe an object or a house, it means that the object or house is becoming derelict, dangerous to live in, a hazard, and incredibly damaged, or already is.
Synonyms "going to hell in a handcart", "going to hell in a handbag", "go to hell in a
bucket", "sending
something to hell in a handbasket" and "
something being like hell in a handbasket".
Example 1
Person 1: That hoarder house went to hell in a handbasket after that tree branch collapsed the roof.
Person 2: The owner still hasn't repaired the roof.
Example 2
To individuals observing the United States of
America from outside of the United States of
America during the last 5 years, it looks like the United States of
America is going to hell in a handbasket.