hell for leather
hell for leather
Very quickly or as quickly as possible. When her ex-boyfriend walked into the party, Patty went hell for leather to get out of there.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
hell for leather
mainly BRITISH1. If you go hell for leather, you move very quickly, and often recklessly. They ran hell for leather to catch up. We bought a map, filled up and drove hell for leather to Lisbon. Note: You can also use hell-for-leather before a noun. There was a hell-for-leather dash to get the train.
2. If you do something hell for leather, you do it very quickly and energetically. Once I decide to write a play, I go for it hell for leather. Note: This expression may originally have related to horse riding. `Leather' would refer to a saddle.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
hell for leather
as fast as possible.This phrase dates from the late 19th century, and originally referred to riding a horse at reckless speed.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
hell for ˈleather
(old-fashioned, British English, informal) with the greatest possible speed, energy, etc: I saw a man going hell for leather down the street, with two policemen running after him.This is from horse riding. A rider can hit a horse with a strip of leather to make it run faster.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017