{"id":11022,"date":"2021-09-16T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-16T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plainenglish.com\/?post_type=expressions&p=11022"},"modified":"2024-02-25T15:28:27","modified_gmt":"2024-02-25T21:28:27","slug":"go-to-great-lengths","status":"publish","type":"expressions","link":"https:\/\/plainenglish.com\/expressions\/go-to-great-lengths\/","title":{"rendered":"Go to great lengths"},"content":{"rendered":"
Today’s English expression is to “go to great lengths.” To go to great lengths is to make an extraordinary effort, an effort that’s more than would be expected under the circumstances. In today’s lesson, you heard that the September 11 Museum<\/a> went to great lengths to identify the owners of all the artifacts in the museum. They found wallets, wristwatches, wedding rings, articles of clothing, items from people’s desks. A wallet is easy to identify. But a watch, a ring, a book, a notebook\u2014this stuff didn’t all come with the names on them. The museum went to great lengths to identify the items and to tell the stories of the people they belonged to.<\/p>\n They went to great lengths: they did more than what would be expected. Who did this ring belong to? When did that person get married? What was that person’s job? Did they have kids? The museum goes to great lengths to tell the story of the person behind the recovered items.<\/p>\n I’ve been to India a few times for work, and it’s quite a difference in culture. I was lucky, though, because my coworkers there went to great lengths to make me feel at home. They made sure I had someone to eat lunch with every day. They helped me to figure out the menus at the cafeteria. They gave me ideas for things to do on the weekends; some even came with me as I explored the area. Someone came by my desk and delivered bottled water every day. They went to great lengths to make sure I felt at home and comfortable. They did more than, I think, a typical person would have done, and I\u2019m extremely grateful for that.<\/p>\n You heard a few weeks ago that hospitality companies are going to great lengths to attract employees<\/a> . It’s not unusual to see companies offer signing bonuses, extra vacation, higher wages, and things like that. Some cities are paying people to relocate. A few McDonald’s restaurants were paying people just to come to the interview. These are examples of going to great lengths to fill a job; doing more than is typically necessary or required.<\/p>\n I remember when Game of Thrones was on television. JR would go to great lengths to make sure he was free on Sunday night when it came on. He would do whatever was necessary!<\/p>\n