to push the envelope
33
7.3
- idiom
:
ir más allá de los límites
- To stay competitive, the company aims to push the envelope on sustainable practices in manufacturing.
- continue to push the envelope
So I think, I think that this, this pushing the envelope is part of us.
- So I think, I think that this, this pushing the envelope is part of us.
- And once they get some advantage from this, they push the envelope even further.
- So I thought, oh shit, Like I kind of pushed the envelope too far.
- And I just hope that people keep experimenting, pushing the envelope.
- Maybe it was out of this false notion that they couldn't push the envelope too far.
- I'm not like, let's go push the envelope.
- So isn't it time now for someone to come out with a show that just pushes the envelope a little bit?
- I think there are ways to push boundaries and push the envelope and make things shocking and, you know, have people talking.
- Everything Andy Kaufman ever did was pushing the envelope in extreme ways, and I can certainly understand his motivation to do so.
- So he has continued to push the envelope in terms of the art of the possible and I I just think he is an incredible genius in in that way.
- Will you ever make a film that's not maybe just slightly pushing the envelope a little bit?
- It's a different thing and TV has always been just on the forefront of pushing the envelope on this is what's going on in the world.
- You you know where they're going, which is OK, But I'm kind of, I like the idea of pushing the envelope a little bit.
Examples
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Innovative artists often push the envelope by incorporating new technologies into their work.
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And he is constantly shaking things up and pushing the envelope, testing the impossible.
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And once they get some advantage from this, they push the envelope even further.
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So we're going to really push the envelope on how do we teach children how to grow healthy food?
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Yeah, just as any lawyer has pressure to push the envelope for her client.
Blog text (11) -
All great artists push the envelope; not all those who push the envelope are great artists.
Blog text (8) -
We love to see our neighbors in the Pacific Northwest push the envelope with innovation.
Blog text (19) -
We should question dogma and pragmatism and push the envelope to discover new and better treatments for our patients.
Academic text (2017) -
For instance, both Mozart and Madonna pushed the envelope and challenged social conventions of their times.
Academic text (2005) -
Institutions such as Conabio or INE have a responsibility to be forward-thinking, to push the envelope, and to look outside the box.
Academic text (2004)
Synonyms
201
3.6
To exceed a limit or what people expect
101
6.8
To go beyond a limit or expectation
39
5.3
To try very hard to do more than usual
8
5.3
To do something in a new way instead of the usual way
7
5.1
Make a person or thing work as hard as possible until they cannot keep going
4
5.3
To do something new first so other people can follow
3
6.0
Challenging normal limits or rules to try new ideas
3
6.8
Do something new that opens the way for others
1
7.2
Use all your energy and take big risks to test your skill
Antonyms
How Innovative
Surface Forms
Morphology
The verb 'push' is literal but the noun 'envelope' in this MWE uses a specialized technical sense (the performance 'envelope' or limits), which is not the common meaning a B1 learner would know; the overall idiomatic sense 'to exceed or extend limits' cannot be inferred from the ordinary meanings of the parts. Because the meaning derives from a metaphorical/technical extension rather than transparent composition, it would be unpredictable to learners who only know the constituents.
Etymology
The expression push the envelope probably comes from test pilots. Engineers used the word envelope for the line that showed a plane's safe limits, and pilots who 'pushed' it tried to fly past those limits. So the phrase now means 'to go past the usual limits' or to try bold new ideas.