go the whole hog
To do something as completely or entirely as possible; to hold back or reserve nothing.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“If you renovate the kitchen, you should go the whole hog.”
“Instead of just painting the walls, they decided to go the whole hog and replace all the furniture.”
“Rather than implementing a partial solution, the committee chose to go the whole hog and overhaul the entire organizational structure to ensure long-term success.”
first recorded 18th c. disputed origin
Origin uncertain; the following etymologies have been suggested: * A reference to using the whole of a hog’s carcass for food, leather, etc., without wasting any part; or specifically to a poem by the English poet William Cowper (1731–1800), “The Love of the World Reproved” (published 1782) in which uncertainty among Muslims about which parts of a hog are permitted as food leads to the whole animal being eaten. * A reference to hog (“(Ireland, New Zealand, UK, historical, slang) shilling; (US, obsolete, rare) ten-cent coin, dime”), possibly in the context of spending the entire sum of money.
- 01
all dressed up and nowhere to go
Elaborately attired or otherwise fully prepared for an anticipated situation or activity which, nevertheless, fails to occur.
- 02
all systems go
Everything is ready.
- 03
as you go
While one is doing (something); as one progresses.
- 04
ball hog
In team sports, a player who keeps the ball to themselves, rather than passing it.
- 05
boldly go where no man has gone before
To break new ground.
- 06
come and go
To repeatedly appear and disappear; to be transient.
- 07
crank one's hog
To masturbate by stimulating one's penis.
- 08
don't go there
Do not broach that topic.
Last updated August 10, 2026