walk on broken glass
English
Alternative forms
- walk across broken glass, crawl on broken glass, crawl across broken glass
Verb
walk on broken glass (third-person singular simple present walks on broken glass, present participle walking on broken glass, simple past and past participle walked on broken glass)
- (idiomatic) To do everything possible to achieve something, even if it involves great risk or discomfort.
- Synonyms: bend over backwards, go to great lengths, go to the ends of the earth, move heaven and earth
- 2021 June 16, Ben Fisher, “Robert Page hails Gareth Bale’s courage after captain drives Wales to victory”, in The Guardian:
- “We’ve got a lot of players not playing domestic football week in, week out. What is it? Is it the crest on their chest that makes them raise their game? It must be. It’s playing for Wales. It’s powerful and everybody would walk on broken glass to get into this squad. Credit goes to the players.”
- 2022 November 15, George T. Conway III, “Trump is out for vengeance — and to protect himself from prosecution”, in The Washington Post:
- Trump won’t succeed, as his successive losses of the House, Senate, presidency and last week’s midterm results show. Too many Americans would crawl on broken glass to vote against him, no matter who his general election opponent may be. They have seen enough.
Related terms
- walk on eggshells