leave your mark

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

to have a lasting and recognisable impact on the world, on a field of endeavour, on a community, or on the lives of other people — to contribute something that persists after one's own direct involvement has ended; the phrase evokes the physical act of marking a surface as a form of claiming presence and asserting identity, and extends this to the lasting traces of creative, intellectual, political, or relational work; leaving one's mark implies that the mark is genuine — the authentic expression of who one is and what one cares about — rather than a superficial claim to attention, and carries the suggestion that the most enduring marks are left by people who pursued something larger than personal recognition