to go the distance
16
4.6
- phrasal verb
:
llegar hasta el final
- After months of training, she was determined to go the distance and complete the marathon.
Chavez junior went the distance with Canelo right in Canelos prime.
- Chavez junior went the distance with Canelo right in Canelos prime.
- I'm going to put this one in hole just to see, just to see if it lasts, if it goes the distance.
- Do you think Shaq and Tanya will go the distance?
- I need your hand in this resistance if we're going to go the distance.
Examples
-
But lawyers need effective strategies to help clients go the distance.
Academic text (1999) -
We have homeschooled our four boys from birth and plan to go the distance until all four graduate from our little homeschool.
Blog text (17) -
So do you plan on going the distance with this girl?
-
So he can go the distance.
-
I never thought this thing would go the distance.
-
And he still went the distance.
-
But how do I know your boys are tough enough to go the distance?
Fiction book (1992) -
The thing is, can you go the distance?
Fiction book (1992) -
The United States Postal Service has a reputation for going the distance to deliver the mail.
Academic text (2004) -
I've got a feeling we're going to go the distance with him.
Fiction book (1992)
Synonyms
489
2.3
To try hard to get better at or finish something over time
306
1.4
Continue doing something without stopping
161
4.4
Move forward without stopping or slowing down
56
3.6
Stick with something until you finish it
39
3.6
To keep going despite problems until you finish
26
4.1
Try very hard to make something happen
22
5.1
Keep trying to do something even when it is hard
21
3.7
Move forward or keep going despite difficulty
19
3.1
To keep making progress despite problems
11
2.5
To have enough money or supplies to continue for a time
8
4.2
Continue and finish a task with strong effort when it is hard or you are tired
5
3.7
To keep doing a job or task without stopping for a long time
3
4.7
Continue doing something even when there are problems
1
5.9
To try very hard and do anything to achieve something
To continue to try hard even when things are difficult
To move forward through a place despite problems
Antonyms
How Persistent
55
3.7
22
5.1
16
4.6
341
3.6
357
1.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is a metaphorical extension of the literal parts: 'go' (proceed) + 'distance' (the full length) signals doing something all the way to the end, so a learner who knows the words can often infer a general sense of 'finish' or 'persist'. However, the nuance of enduring difficulty or the fixed idiomatic collocation is not fully predictable from the parts alone, making the expression only partially transparent.
Etymology
Go the distance comes from sports like boxing or racing, where a fighter or runner had to go the full distance to finish the match or race. That's why it now means 'to keep going until something is finished', even when it is hard.