through thick and thin

Cultural  

1. To stay with someone or something “through thick and thin” is to persevere through good times as well as bad: “She stood beside her friend through thick and thin.”

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through thick and thin Idioms  

1. Despite all obstacles or adversities, as in She promised to stand by him through thick and thin. This term alludes to penetrating a forest with both thick and sparse undergrowth. Today it is nearly always used with the idea of supporting something or someone in all circumstances, as in the example. [Late 1300s]

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Example Sentences

It’s awesome, to be supported through thick and thin.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026

You have been there through thick and thin!

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

“They’ve stuck with the Venezuelan market through thick and thin, and endured a lot of adverse conditions, a lot of headwinds,” said Clay Seigel, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

I guarantee that the ever-growing, multi-partisan, pro-democracy army keeps working through thick and thin.

From Salon • Jul. 15, 2024

Even if it was 30 miles from the village, I’d go on my own, through thick and thin, through the forest and deserts.

From "Facing the Lion" by Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton and Herman Viola

Related Words

• adamantly
• decisively
• doggedly
• persistently
• resolutely
• staunchly
• steadfastly
• strictly
• stubbornly
• tenaciously