"go to great lengths to do sth." 是英语中强调“极致努力”的常用短语,核心含义和用法如下:
字面直译是“为做某事走了很长的路”,引申为:
它突出为实现目标而付出超出常规的努力(甚至采取额外措施、牺牲时间/精力),语气比普通的"try hard"或"do one's best"更强烈,隐含“为达目的不惜一切”的意味。
根据主语和时态调整"go"的形式:
一般现在时:主语(第三人称单数)→ goes to great lengths...(e.g. He goes to great lengths to...)
一般过去时:→ went to great lengths...(e.g. She went to great lengths...)
将来时:→ will go to great lengths...(e.g. They will go to great lengths...)
后面必须接不定式(to do),不能接动名词(doing);
主语通常是“人/组织”(主动付出努力的主体),无被动语态。
通过具体语境理解短语的使用场景:
1、 父母为孩子的教育:
My parents went to great lengths to send me to a top high school.
(我父母竭尽全力送我去一所顶尖高中。)
2、 团队为目标奋斗:
The football team will go to great lengths to win the final match.
(这支足球队会不遗余力赢得决赛。)
3、 个人为细节付出:
She goes to great lengths to make her homemade cakes look perfect.
(她费很大劲让自制蛋糕看起来完美无缺。)
4、 公司解决问题:
The restaurant went to great lengths to apologize to the angry customer—they even offered a free meal for a month.
(这家餐厅竭尽全力向愤怒的顾客道歉——甚至提供了一个月的免费餐。)
spare no effort to do sth.(不遗余力):侧重“不节省努力”,语气接近;
do one's utmost to do sth.(尽最大努力):强调“用尽自身全部能力”;
go all out to do sth.(全力以赴):侧重“投入全部精力”。
相比之下,"go to great lengths"更突出“采取额外/非常规措施”(如例句4中的“提供免费餐”),更强调“努力的程度之深”。
当你想表达“为某事付出极大努力、甚至超出常规”时,就可以用"go to great lengths to do sth.",它能精准传递“拼尽全力”的决心~