Hard work is a universal key to success, but sometimes plain words just don’t cut it.

That’s where idioms come in—expressive phrases that add color, character, and meaning to everyday language.

31 Idioms for Working Hard

1. Burn the midnight oil

Meaning: Stay up late working or studying.

Usage:

• She burned the midnight oil to prepare for the big presentation.
• During finals week, students all over campus are burning the midnight oil.

2. Put your nose to the grindstone

Meaning: Focus and work steadily and hard.

Usage:

• If you put your nose to the grindstone, you’ll meet the deadline.
• He’s been putting his nose to the grindstone ever since he started his new job.

3. Work your fingers to the bone

Meaning: Work extremely hard, often to the point of exhaustion.

Usage:

• My parents worked their fingers to the bone to give us a better life.
• She worked her fingers to the bone getting the house ready for the holidays.

4. Go the extra mile

Meaning: Do more than what is required or expected.

Usage:

• Excellent customer service means going the extra mile for clients.
• He always goes the extra mile to make sure the team succeeds.

5. Break your back

Meaning: Work very hard, often with physical or mental strain.

Usage:

• They broke their backs trying to renovate the house themselves.
• You don’t have to break your back—ask for help when you need it.

6. Hustle hard

Meaning: Work with great energy and determination.

Usage:

• If you want to build a business, you’ve got to hustle hard.
• She hustled hard and landed her dream job in just six months.

7. Put in the legwork

Meaning: Do the hard physical or preparatory work.

Usage:

• He put in the legwork to research every college before applying.
• Success doesn’t come easy—you’ve got to put in the legwork.

8. Give it your all

Meaning: Put in maximum effort.

Usage:

• The team gave it their all during the championship game.
• Even if you don’t win, give it your all and be proud.

9. Pull out all the stops

Meaning: Use every effort or resource to achieve something.

Usage:

• They pulled out all the stops for their daughter’s wedding.
• The company pulled out all the stops to impress the investors.

10. Grind away

Meaning: Work steadily, especially at something difficult or tedious.

Usage:

• He’s been grinding away at his thesis for weeks.
• She grinds away day after day to grow her freelance business.

11. Sweat blood

Meaning: To put in extreme effort or go through intense struggle.

Usage:

• He sweated blood to get that promotion at work.
• We sweated blood trying to meet the tight deadline.

12. Keep your head down

Meaning: To stay focused and keep working without drawing attention.

Usage:

• She kept her head down and finished the report ahead of schedule.
• If you keep your head down and stay productive, people will notice.

13. Buckle down

Meaning: To start working seriously or with determination.

• It’s time to buckle down and study for those exams.
• He finally buckled down and got the project done on time.

14. Knuckle down

Meaning: Similar to buckle down — to get serious and start working hard.

Usage:

• You’ll have to knuckle down if you want to pass this course.
• After vacation, it took me a while to knuckle down at work again.

15. Dig in your heels

Meaning: To refuse to quit or give up, even when things are tough.

Usage:

• They dug in their heels and kept pushing through the setbacks.
• She dug in her heels and kept studying until she mastered the material.

16. Roll up your sleeves

Meaning: To get ready to start working hard.

Usage:

• Let’s roll up our sleeves and tackle this project head-on.
• Time to roll up your sleeves—we’ve got a lot to do.

17. Put your shoulder to the wheel

Meaning: To put in a lot of effort and push forward with a task.

Usage:

• The whole team put their shoulders to the wheel to meet the launch date.
• If we all put our shoulders to the wheel, we’ll finish early.

18. In the trenches

Meaning: Doing the hard, day-to-day work (often used in business or war metaphors).

Usage:

• She’s been in the trenches, dealing with customer complaints firsthand.
• The real insight comes from those who are in the trenches every day.

19. Hit the ground running

Meaning: Start working hard immediately without delay.

Usage:

• He hit the ground running on his first day at the new job.
• The marketing team hit the ground running after the product launch.

20. Put in the hard yards (British/Australian originally, but used in U.S. sports/business)

Meaning: Do the tough, necessary work to succeed.

Usage:

• If you put in the hard yards now, success will follow.
• No one saw the hard yards she put in behind the scenes.

21. All in a day’s work

Meaning: Something difficult or challenging that is considered normal as part of one’s job.

Usage:

• Dealing with last-minute changes is all in a day’s work for event planners.
• For a firefighter, saving lives is all in a day’s work.

22. Get your hands dirty

Meaning: To do hard, practical, or manual work.

Usage:

• The boss isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty when needed.
• You’ve got to get your hands dirty if you want to learn the ropes.

23. Grind it out

Meaning: Persist through a difficult or tiring task until it’s done.

Usage:

• Even when things got boring, she kept grinding it out.
• Writers have to grind it out, even when inspiration is low.

24. Pull your weight

Meaning: Do your fair share of work in a group.

Usage:

• If everyone pulls their weight, we’ll finish faster.
• She’s new, but she’s already pulling her weight.

25. Run yourself ragged

Meaning: Exhaust yourself by working too much.

Usage:

• He ran himself ragged trying to please everyone.
• She’s running herself ragged working two jobs and studying.

26. Rise and grind

Meaning: Wake up and start working hard, often used as a motivational phrase.

Usage:

• It’s 5 a.m.—time to rise and grind!
• Successful people rise and grind every day without excuses.

27. Put your back into it

Meaning: Put a lot of physical or mental effort into something.

Usage:

• Come on, put your back into it—we’re almost done!
• You’ll get results if you really put your back into the work.

28. Make hay while the sun shines

Meaning: Take advantage of a good situation while it lasts; work hard while you can.

Usage:

• The market is booming—time to make hay while the sun shines.
• He took on extra shifts to make hay while the sun was shining.

29. Throw yourself into something

Meaning: Dedicate yourself to a task with great energy and enthusiasm.

Usage:

• She threw herself into the new project and made huge progress.
• After the breakup, he threw himself into his career.

30. Earn your keep

Meaning: Work in exchange for being supported (like a salary, room, or respect).

Usage:

• He earns his keep by helping with farm chores.
• Interns must earn their keep by being useful and reliable.

31. Chase the grind

Meaning: To pursue success through consistent hard work; embrace the hustle culture.

Usage:

• Entrepreneurs have to chase the grind day in and day out.
• If you’re chasing the grind, there’s no room for laziness.