go the extra mile
/ˌɡəʊ ði ˌekstrə ˈmaɪl/NEUTRAL · B2
Meaning
to make more effort than people expect
Examples
- 1The plumber went the extra mile and fixed the dripping tap for free.
- 2Staff who go the extra mile get a mention at the Friday meeting.
- 3Maria went the extra mile, ringing every supplier until she found the part.
- 4Nobody asked the electrician to go the extra mile, but he stayed until the job was right.
- 5Would you go the extra mile if it meant missing your train home?
Grammar
Only go changes form (went, gone). Keep the extra mile fixed and singular; the person you do it for follows for.
Similar in meaning
More idioms about work and careers
All 20 idioms and the topic quiz →get the sackto be dismissed from your jobburn the midnight oilto work very late into the nightred tapeofficial rules that make things slowthink outside the boxto think in a new and creative waypass the buckto make someone else deal with your responsibilitymove the goalpoststo change the rules unfairly once work has started
English Idioms400 idioms in 20 topics — with reviews that keep them from fading
Here you get a couple of questions. The app gives you 16 practice modes, native equivalents and spaced repetition that tells you when it’s time to refresh.
