for all the world
- idiom
:
ni por todo el oro del mundo
- I wouldn't reveal her secret for all the world.
Examples
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She wouldn't trade her childhood memories for all the world.
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She wouldn't betray her friends, for all the world.
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He wouldn't move to another city for all the world.
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I wouldn't do that, for all the world!
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I wouldn't reveal her secret for all the world.
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She wouldn't trade her childhood memories for all the world.
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He wouldn't move to another city for all the world.
Synonyms
1
6.7
To never do something, no matter what happens
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase literally combines 'for' + 'all' + 'the world', so a learner can infer an emphatic meaning of totality (i.e., 'for the whole world'), but its conventional use — especially in negative contexts to mean 'under no circumstances' or 'not for anything' — is idiomatic and relies on pragmatic knowledge rather than simple composition. Because the connection to the parts is partly clear but the specific negative/emphatic usage is not fully predictable, it is best classified as semi-transparent.
Etymology
For all the world gives the picture of everyone and everything offering you something, but you would not accept it no matter what. That's why for all the world is used to mean 'not for anything at all'.