last-ditch effort

Idioms  

1. A desperate final attempt, as in We're making a last-ditch effort to finish on time. This expression alludes to the military sense of last ditch, “the last line of defense.” Its figurative use dates from the early 1800s.

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Example Sentences

Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Cedric Mullins collided chest first into the blue padding of the center field wall as he made one last-ditch effort to save his team from a Dodgers home run.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2026

Samsung management and union leaders resumed talks on Monday in a last-ditch effort to avoid a strike.

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

But an alert Gabriel put in a last-ditch effort, applying just enough pressure to distract Simeone as he got his shot away and save Saliba's blushes.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

In a last-ditch effort to get back to Duke, Bior obtained a special refugee passport, issued by Uganda, that he hopes will allow him to bypass the South Sudan visa ban.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

Now the hoodlums were mounting a last-ditch effort to get us out of school before May 29.

From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals