sweat blood

🌎Region: International 📊Difficulty Level:intermediate

💡Meaning

To work extremely hard or struggle intensely to achieve something; to put in enormous effort.

🕰️Origin

A vivid hyperbole: people sweat under extreme exertion, and “blood” intensifies the image to mean extraordinary strain. It has been used in English for centuries as figurative language for severe effort or suffering.

📝Notes

Strong, dramatic hyperbole for intense effort or hardship. Used in speech and writing, but can sound over-the-top for minor tasks.

💬Examples

We sweated blood to get the product ready before the launch date.
She had to sweat blood to pass the final exam while working full-time.
The team sweated blood on that report, and the client barely glanced at it.
If you want to compete at that level, you’ll have to sweat blood in training.
He swore he’d rather sweat blood now than regret it later.

📘Grammar & Usage Notes

Usually appears as a verb phrase: “sweat blood (over/for something)” or “I/We sweated blood to do X.” Tense can vary (sweated/sweating). Often paired with “to” + verb or “over” + problem.

🔗Synonyms

work your fingers to the bone
toil
slave away
break your back

↔️Antonyms

take it easy
coast
breeze through