the limit

Idioms  

1. The most extreme; someone or something that irritates, delights, or surprises to the ultimate degree. For example, Hiring and firing someone the same day—that's the limit in employee relations! or That excuse of yours for missing the wedding, that's the limit, or He's done wonders before but this last one is the limit. This idiom uses limit as “the last possible point or boundary.” [Colloquial; c. 1900]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

the limit

Spain’s firefighting resources are already stretched to the limit.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

I asked why the limit was so low, but they couldn’t give me an explanation.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026

The 21-year-old custodian was the Lightning Lane manager for his group of 19 extended family members—nearly twice the limit that can be managed on a single device.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

You have to really want it to perform at the highest level in F1, to drive to the limit every time you get in the car, no matter how competitive it is.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

D’Alembert realized that the Achilles problem vanishes if you consider the limit of the race.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Related Words

• exuberance
• glut
• overkill
• surplus
• waste