In this English vocabulary lesson you will learn how to use the idiom – To go the extra mile. When you want to achieve something, you take great pains in doing so. If you want to achieve a goal or want to perform well at work, you go out of your way and do everything to be successful in what you are doing.
When you want to achieve something, you take great pains in doing so. If you want to achieve a goal or want to perform well at work, you go out of your way and do everything to be successful in what you are doing.
The idiom ‘to go the extra mile’ basically means to take extra efforts to do something.
You don’t give up. You put more time, efforts and energy in your task. You actually do more than what you are supposed to do. If someone is prepared to go the extra mile, they will do everything they can to succeed. They will actually do more than what they are supposed to do. They don’t give up. They put more time, efforts and energy in your task. For example, if a professor at your university always ensures to meet the need of her students, she goes the extra mile. It means she is always there to address the queries of her students and takes pain to make the subject easier for the students.
The word ‘mile’ is a unit of distance. So when you use ‘to go the extra mile’, you mean to go the extra distance to express that you are taking extra efforts or doing something extra or beyond what is expected. You go out of your way to do things.
The word ‘go’ in this idiom is a verb. It does not mean ‘to move from one place to another’ in its actual sense. Here ‘go’ shows the action of taking the effort. Its past form is ‘went’ and the past participle form is ‘gone’.
English phrases for conversation:
Example 01: At the meeting, the manager was motivating his team to go the extra mile to achieve their targets.
Example 02: The customer care support always goes the extra mile to resolve issues promptly to satisfy their customers.
Example 03: When Victor wanted to apologize to his girlfriend after a fight, he went the extra mile and brought her chocolates and flowers.
Example 04: To look good for her wedding day, Rosaline went the extra mile by sweating it out at the gym.
Example 05: Maria goes the extra mile to console her friend when she is low and depressed.
Example 06: After failing in his Math test, Ben is going the extra mile by practicing more of it.
Example 07: To please his clients, Richard has gone the extra mile by making an impressive presentation.
Example 08: Nancy wanted to look like a perfect fairy at the fancy dress competition. She went the extra mile to look like one.
Example 09: For the family get together, Jenny went the extra mile for preparing exotic dishes.
Example 10: Teresa went the extra mile and bought many toys for her daughter’s birthday.
