to good purpose
To effective use, as in A donation to the homeless shelter will be put to good purpose. This idiom was first recorded in 1553. Also see to little or no purpose.
RELATED CONTENT
“Not Good” vs. “No Good”: When To Use Them BothHere’s something that’s good to know: No good means something has no use or value, and has no potential of becoming good. Not good means something is bad or undesirable. The correct way to use them isn’t that clear cut. At times, there’s no difference, and they can be used interchangeably. No Good When good is used as a noun, no can quantify or modify …
For All “Intents and Purposes” vs. “Intensive Purposes”Both for all intents and purposes and for all intensive purposes are widely used to mean “for all practical purposes” or “virtually.” But which one is correct? The standard idiom is for all intents and purposes, not for all intensive purposes, though if you were to say these two forms out loud it might be hard to tell the difference between the two. For all …
Nearby words
to burn, to date, to death, to each his own, to err is human, to forgive divine, to good purpose, to hand, to heel, to hell and gone, to hell with, to kill a mockingbird
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.