full speed ahead

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

an idiom originating in naval commands meaning to proceed at maximum power with no reduction in pace or commitment, now used broadly to mean pressing forward vigorously and without hesitation toward a goal; the phrase entered common usage from nineteenth-century steamship navigation where it was a literal engine-room telegraph instruction, and it carries connotations of decisive leadership willing to commit fully to a course of action; in modern usage it describes an approach of maximum effort and urgency, often with a slight recklessness implied — someone going full speed ahead may not be pausing to assess emerging risks, which can be a quality or a liability depending on the circumstances