at any cost
23
4.1
- idiom
:
a toda costa
- And we will remain one people in harmony at any cost.
- win at any cost
They haven't, we've seen that they haven't worked for they've worked for the growth economy and growth at any cost.
- They haven't, we've seen that they haven't worked for they've worked for the growth economy and growth at any cost.
- We have to stop worshipping at the altar of charisma and charm and glibness and success at any cost.
- When people with soul rise up at any cost, they can slay the dragon.
- If you had just told me you want high performance at any cost, come on guys, it's me.
- You continued keeping that exterior, you know, at any cost, right?
- And so it's really all about manipulating you at any cost.
- And we will make assumptions to make ourselves feel better at any cost.
- It's it can't be accept me at any cost.
- Because, you know, for Sky's the limit at any cost enthusiasts, something like this honestly doesn't even seem that crazy.
- And I, I didn't, I didn't want to jinx it at any cost.
- You know you need to motivate the rat at any cost, so Rubia does whatever it takes to coax the rat to walk.
- Jake Paul has done everything in his power to exploit his fans, sell himself out, make as much money as possible for any at any cost.
Examples
-
The rescue units were under orders to bring out all the casualties, at any cost.
Fiction book (1993) -
Least favorite coaches were remembered as stressing winning at any cost, lying to players, demanding respect without earning it, and overworking players.
Academic text (2011) -
And you, you must put an end to it at any cost.
-
You wanted to keep this plane in the air at any cost.
-
The sum of all these factors was a willingness to take on the world at any cost.
Academic text (1995) -
We can't lose him today, at any cost.
-
Thus, the country is serious about achieving self-sufficiency in food production at any cost.
Academic text (2008) -
I was instructed to win this case at any cost, and that's exactly what I intend to do.
-
Dedicated, intelligent, and charismatic, Jordan is determined to complete his mission at any cost, personal or military.
Academic text (2013) -
She decided to protect her home from the storm at any cost.
Synonyms
101
5.2
Willing to do anything needed to reach a goal, however hard
94
3.2
A phrase that says something will happen despite problems
62
3.7
To do whatever is necessary, even if it is risky
5
8.3
No matter what happens or how difficult it is
5
6.3
No matter what happens
5
7.0
To do whatever is needed to reach a goal, even if the actions are difficult or harmful
3
8.4
Says that something will be done no matter what problems happen
Do something even if it costs a lot
How Important
23
4.1
11
3.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is transparently compositional: 'cost' = sacrifice/expense, 'any' = no matter which, and 'at' marks the condition, so a learner can infer 'regardless of the expense or sacrifice.' Many languages use the same literal construction (e.g. Spanish 'a toda costa', French 'à tout prix'), making the logic obvious to B1 learners who know the constituent words.
Etymology
At any cost comes from the simple image of paying a price: imagine someone ready to pay any cost or give up anything to get or protect something. So, it means 'no matter what must be done or given up' to reach a goal.