English Reference
Idiom idiom

press on


To persist, to continue to advance.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.


SIMPLE

The rain is heavy, but we must press on.

CONTEXTUAL

Even though the project was difficult and we were tired, we decided to press on until we finished.

COMPLEX

Despite the mounting obstacles and the exhaustion of his weary team, the explorer chose to press on toward the distant mountain peak.


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    hot off the presses

    Freshly printed, minted, written, or created.

  2. 02

    press into service

    To make someone perform a task or duty, especially one they are not prepared or willing to do; to make something serve a function, especially one it was not designed or intended for.

  3. 03

    press the flesh

    To shake hands and socialize, especially in a political gathering.

  4. 04

    press the panic button

    To start to panic.

  5. 05

    pressed for time

    in a hurry, without spare time.

  6. 06

    stop press

    Used to grab attention, implying importance, news-worthiness, etc.

  7. 07

    stop the presses

    An exclamation used to introduce especially new, important, surprising, or recent developments.

  8. 08

    yellow press

    Newspapers which publish sensationalist articles rather than well researched and sober journalism.

Last updated August 10, 2026