anything goes

Idioms  

1. Everything is permitted, as in You're wearing sneakers to the office?—Why not? Anything goes these days. This idiom began life as everything goes, which appeared in George Meredith's novel The Egoist (1879). In America anything was the preferred word, which gained further currency with Cole Porter's use of the term as the title of his 1934 song and musical comedy, Anything Goes!

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Example Sentences

And if anything goes wrong, he’ll happily take the fall.

From Salon • Apr. 9, 2026

The moment anything goes wrong, the doomsaying around the club reaches frenetic levels rarely seen outside the New York Mets.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

Because this alt comedy makes no bones about its characters or situations being even remotely logical or realistic, anything goes — and does.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026

More or less anything goes in the battle to be the last one standing.

From BBC • Sep. 1, 2025

“Finally, something useful! here. If anything goes wrong out there, we’ll know right away!”

From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs