ENGLISH
REFERENCE

go to the wall

idiom
Meaning

To make an all-out effort.

Origin

disputed origin

From a fight or military retreating until they cannot escape; see have one's back to the wall and retreat to the wall doctrine in common law.

Examples
SIMPLE

They will go to the wall to win this game.

CONTEXTUAL

The team decided to go to the wall to finish the project before the deadline.

COMPLEX

Facing total bankruptcy, the small business owner chose to go to the wall, exhausting every resource to save the company he had built over decades.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 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.

  2. 02

    all systems go

    Everything is ready.

  3. 03

    as you go

    While one is doing (something); as one progresses.

  4. 04

    back to the wall

    A very difficult situation with no beneficial options available for action.

  5. 05

    balls to the wall

    With maximum effort or commitment.

  6. 06

    bang one's head against a brick wall

    To waste effort on a futile project.

  7. 07

    blue wall of silence

    Strict secretiveness maintained by the members of a police force with respect to information which might be contrary to their interests, especially information concerning questionable police actions.

  8. 08

    boldly go where no man has gone before

    To break new ground.

Last updated April 17, 2026