to the gills
3
8.0
- idiom
- Informal
:
hasta los topes
- Our ship is loaded to the gills as it is.
- packed to the gills
- stuffed to the gills
- loaded to the gills
We are filling arenas, we're filling stadiums, we're filling places to the gills where it's standing room only.
- We are filling arenas, we're filling stadiums, we're filling places to the gills where it's standing room only.
Examples
-
Yeah, I'm packed to the gills.
-
We are filling arenas, we're filling stadiums, we're filling places to the gills where it's standing room only.
-
Around him, we see other cars packed to the gills as they make their escape from New York.
Fiction book (1996) -
Go out and stuff yourself to the gills by yourself or with casual friends.
Blog text (28) -
Being stuffed to the gills with delicious food, I fully endorse this article.
Blog text (7) -
Asgeir played about a kazillion official and off-venue shows during Airwaves, all of which we were told were packed to the gills.
Blog text (25) -
The club was filled to the gills with fans eager to see their favorite band perform.
-
After the party, my fridge was stocked to the gills with leftovers that I couldn't finish.
-
She was so busy with work that her schedule was packed to the gills with meetings all week.
Synonyms
22
4.8
In very large amounts, often more than needed
14
8.0
To a very great degree
12
3.4
Filled to the top edge
7
7.5
To a much greater degree than is normal
Antonyms
How Complete
Surface Forms
Morphology
to + the + gills
The phrase literally evokes being filled up to a body part ('gills'), so a learner who knows the words might get a sense of extreme fullness, but the connection is metaphorical and relies on an anatomical image that is not a common compositional pattern. Because the extension from fish gills to the abstract sense 'completely/excessively' is somewhat indirect and language-specific, it is partially predictable but not fully transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
To the gills may come from old fish markets where fish were piled so high that their gills reached the rim of the basket. That's why it now means 'completely full' or 'as much as possible'.