to go to great lengths
26
4.1
- idiom
:
hacer todo lo posible
- We went to great lengths to make this a special day for her.
- go to great lengths to achieve
- go to great lengths to ensure
- go to great lengths to protect
And they, they go to great lengths in order to prove what they do.
- And they, they go to great lengths in order to prove what they do.
- Koreans will go to great lengths to learn more.
- Obviously our hair is very different from other races and we go to great lengths to assimilate.
- So we've seen people really in the service of what's best for our children go to great lengths.
- While many philanthropists hire an army of publicists to trumpet their donations, Feeney went to great lengths to keep his gift secret.
- And so I had to go to great lengths to get him to want to speak to me and communicate.
- People may go to greater lengths with safety plans because the dangers feel more present and real in a vulnerable narcissistic relationship.
- Look, we went to great lengths to make it clear that this is not a cabal, it's not a conspiracy.
- OK, whatever the reason, people go to great lengths, despite all the risks of incarceration and so on, to use drugs because they seem to think that it makes them better off.
- And Patterson went to great lengths to do just that.
Examples
-
People will go to great lengths to defraud an insurance carrier.
-
God went to great lengths to express His love for you.
-
But you go to great lengths to explain all of this stuff.
-
And they, they go to great lengths in order to prove what they do.
-
The general has gone to great lengths to secure for you this.
-
I know you well enough to understand that you would go to great lengths to avoid a fight.
Fiction book (1992) -
Major League Baseball goes to great lengths to ensure that its game does not change.
Academic text (2010) -
Every story begins with a character who wants something and is willing to go to great lengths to achieve it.
Academic text (2010) -
And Patterson went to great lengths to do just that.
-
We went to great lengths to make this a special day for her.
Synonyms
156
3.7
To work very hard to reach a goal
53
3.5
Make a special effort to do something, often to help someone
39
4.1
To try as hard as you can with a lot of energy
32
5.2
To try hard to do something, especially when it is difficult
26
3.7
To do more than is required to help others or complete a task
18
4.8
Take any action needed to reach a goal, even when it is difficult
14
2.1
To make as much effort as you can to reach a goal
7
4.2
Do everything you can to achieve something important
6
5.2
Make a lot of effort and be careful about small details
5
3.2
To try as hard as possible
2
3.9
Do everything possible to achieve something
1
5.9
To try very hard and do anything to achieve something
1
6.9
To make a big effort beyond your usual limits
1
8.6
To try very hard to do something
Put in as much effort and energy as possible
Try as hard as possible to do something well
To try as hard as possible to do something
To work as hard as you can, often more than expected
Antonyms
How Hard
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase relies on a metaphorical use of 'lengths' (≈extents or degree) combined with 'go to' to mean 'undertake or reach,' so a learner who knows the words could infer a general sense of 'going far' or 'doing a lot.' However the specific idiomatic nuance 'make great/extreme effort' is not fully predictable from the literal parts and requires some exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
The idiom go to great lengths comes from the image of someone walking a very long way or taking long steps to reach something important. So, when you go to great lengths, you 'make a great effort' or do a lot to achieve a goal.