through and through
23
3.5
- idiom
- Informal
:
por completo
- Some men are prospectors through and through, and Jackfish was one of them.
- good through and through
So the bond market is just, it's evil through and through.
- So the bond market is just, it's evil through and through.
- So I was really a salesperson through and through.
- It's stunning, so blurring, long wearing, it's just amazing through and through.
- And then from there on, visualize the win through and through.
- Like these are the, this is who you are through and through.
- But this was a joint endeavour straight down the line, through and through.
- Oh, you can tell he's a known bassoonist through and through.
- I'm just, I'm a guide dog user through and through with my cane.
- But most importantly, Carl is MIT through and through, as also some of you may know, getting his PhD here.
- He's sort of got care through and through, but it's breaking him apart.
- It's just through and through a really nice solid dry shampoo.
- The whole thing through and through, I think is a delight.
- Now, as I mentioned, this is a story that is gender through and through.
Examples
-
Prince Philip is a military man through and through.
-
The project is to understand the Church, and it is theological through and through.
Academic text (2005) -
You just know it, through and through.
-
Georgy was a professional through and through and, once on a job, tried always to deliver the goods.
Fiction book (1995) -
The U.S. Marshals were known as team players through and through.
Fiction book (1995) -
Your sons and daughters are true blue and we love you through and through.
-
However, his first story for us is pure fantasy, a ghost story that rings true through and through.
Fiction book (2001) -
Although it is flawed through and through, the book now passes, in some circles at least, as received wisdom.
Academic text (1995) -
But most importantly, Carl is MIT through and through, as also some of you may know, getting his PhD here.
-
She is an artist through and through, always expressing her creativity in various forms.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Totally, in every way
33
3.5
Completely and in every detail
Antonyms
How Thorough
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'completely; in every part' is transparently built from the constituent 'through' repeated and linked by 'and' — the repetition serves as an intensifier of the base meaning. This compositional intensification is a common, predictable pattern cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows 'through' and basic conjunction use will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The idiom through and through comes from the image of something going all the way through an object, like an arrow that passes through one side and through the other. That's why it now means 'completely' or 'in every part'.