go for broke

G

go for broke

Meaning

• risk everything and go for an all out effort
• try as hard as possible
• gamble everything you have
• try everything possible to achieve something

Example Sentences

1. Realizing that they would be out of the competition if they lost this match, the players went for broke.
2. This is my last chance to achieve what I want. I am going to go for broke.
3. If you really want to become a successful actor, go for broke. Give up everything else and focus only on your acting career.
4. If you decide to go for broke, you can’t be thinking about what will happen if you fail.
5. Realizing that he was trailing in his campaign, the politician decided to go for broke and raked up sensitive and dodgy issues.
6. The sportsman went for broke in his quest for a berth in the prestigious event.

Origin
The phrase originated in the Hawaiian Pidgin English. It is slang used in the game craps, which is dice game where a player makes wagers on the outcome of the roll of a dice. The phrase was used to mean to wager everything on a single roll of dice, thus, if the player lost, he would be broke, or bankrupt. It was also the motto of the Japanese-American military unit 442nd Infantry Regiment during the World War II. The phrase was popularized during this time.