to the nth degree

Idioms and Phrases

To the utmost, as in They'd decked out the house to the nth degree . This expression comes from mathematics, where to the nth means “to any required power” ( n standing for any number). It was first recorded in 1852.

Example Sentences

This goes to the nth degree when it comes to war in this region, where illusion, hypocrisy, and mendacity reign as in few others.

From Slate

“I think we should punish the perpetrator to the nth degree, I’d love to hang them from the high street if it was in my power to do so. But I cannot condone killing the innocent,” Horton said.

From Seattle Times

"I gave him a commitment on that day that we would go to the 'nth' degree to make sure all of those responsible would be placed before the court," he says.

From BBC

“There’s a special bond that’s formed among people who have actually been on the stage and had their comments scrutinized to the nth degree and then people project their own selves into it. All I knew going in is Yogesh is an extremely gifted player, a very knowledgeable and talented player in the trivia world and that he deserved to be there because he played well and he is as knowledgeable as they come, so I was glad to be able to share a stage with him.”

From Seattle Times

“Whatever you asked him to do, he did to the nth degree. I was getting hourly updates of what was happening. He could have filed 10 stories that day.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• absolutely
• altogether
• comprehensively
• effectively
• entirely
• finally
• fully
• perfectly
• quite
• thoroughly
• totally
• ultimately
• unconditionally
• utterly
• wholly