what does "that ship has sunk" mean?

[Awake2reality]

Hi,

would you please explain the meaning of the expression "that ship has sunk"? I heard it on TV and i guess in the context it meant that the issue had already been decided but I'm not sure.

Thanks.

[Yankee]

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When language is used figuratively rather than literally, it is always best to provide the full context if you want others to give you an opinion about the figurative meaning.

Without any context, I would guess that the expression might have been used to mean that 'we have already tried that method/idea/option, and it didn't work' (i.e. that is no longer an option).
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