fire on all cylinders

1. To have all cylinders in an engine functioning. There's something wrong with my car—it's definitely not firing on all cylinders.

2. To function or operate at the most desirable or greatest possible level of efficiency, speed, or productivity. (Usually used in the continuous tense.) The new website will be firing on all cylinders once we get the comments section up and running! I only fire on all cylinders after I've had my coffee.

firing on all cylinders

and hitting on all cylinders

1. Lit.

[of an internal combustion engine] having all its cylinders working and thus providing the maximum amount of power. The old car is firing on all cylinders despite its age. This thing's not hitting on all cylinders.

2. Fig. working at full strength; making every possible effort. The team is firing on all cylinders under the new coach. The factory is hitting on all cylinders to finish the orders on time.

fire on all cylinders

Also, hit or click on all cylinders . Function very well, as in Once we figured out how to use the new software, the department was firing on all cylinders , or "So the best infielder takes time to fit into the infield of a Big League club and have it hit on all four cylinders again" (Christy Mathewson, Pitching in a Pinch, 1912). This term transfers the functioning of an internal combustion engine, which works best when all its cylinders ignite, to broader use. [Early 1900s]

firing on all (four) cylinders

working or functioning at a peak level.

This expression is a metaphor from an internal-combustion engine: a cylinder is said to be firing when the fuel inside it is ignited.

1998 Entertainment Weekly Even when his imagination isn't firing on all cylinders, Amis is still worth picking up, if only to enjoy the jazzy rhythm of his prose.

firing/working on all ˈcylinders

(informal) using all your energy to do something; working as well as possible: The 24-year-old player feels that he is not yet firing on all cylinders.

See also: all, cylinder, firing, on, working

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

fire on all cylinders

Go all out. The term comes from automobiles, where it means all of a car’s cylinders have been ignited and the engine is fully powered. It has been used figuratively since the second half of the 1900s, as in “That was a great speech; he was really firing on all cylinders.” See also pull out all the stops.

词组	fire on all cylinders
释义	fire on all cylinders fire on all cylinders 1. To have all cylinders in an engine functioning. There's something wrong with my car—it's definitely not firing on all cylinders. 2. To function or operate at the most desirable or greatest possible level of efficiency, speed, or productivity. (Usually used in the continuous tense.) The new website will be firing on all cylinders once we get the comments section up and running! I only fire on all cylinders after I've had my coffee. See also: all, cylinder, fire, on Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. firing on all cylinders and hitting on all cylinders 1. Lit. [of an internal combustion engine] having all its cylinders working and thus providing the maximum amount of power. The old car is firing on all cylinders despite its age. This thing's not hitting on all cylinders. 2. Fig. working at full strength; making every possible effort. The team is firing on all cylinders under the new coach. The factory is hitting on all cylinders to finish the orders on time. See also: all, cylinder, firing, on McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. fire on all cylinders Also, hit or click on all cylinders . Function very well, as in Once we figured out how to use the new software, the department was firing on all cylinders , or "So the best infielder takes time to fit into the infield of a Big League club and have it hit on all four cylinders again" (Christy Mathewson, Pitching in a Pinch, 1912). This term transfers the functioning of an internal combustion engine, which works best when all its cylinders ignite, to broader use. [Early 1900s] See also: all, cylinder, fire, on The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. firing on all (four) cylinders working or functioning at a peak level. This expression is a metaphor from an internal-combustion engine: a cylinder is said to be firing when the fuel inside it is ignited. 1998 Entertainment Weekly Even when his imagination isn't firing on all cylinders, Amis is still worth picking up, if only to enjoy the jazzy rhythm of his prose. See also: all, cylinder, firing, on Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary firing/working on all ˈcylinders (informal) using all your energy to do something; working as well as possible: The 24-year-old player feels that he is not yet firing on all cylinders. See also: all, cylinder, firing, on, working Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary fire on all cylinders Go all out. The term comes from automobiles, where it means all of a car’s cylinders have been ignited and the engine is fully powered. It has been used figuratively since the second half of the 1900s, as in “That was a great speech; he was really firing on all cylinders.” See also pull out all the stops. See also: all, cylinder, fire, on The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer See also: firing/working on all cylinders work on all cylinders run on all cylinders hit on all six hitting on all cylinders hit on all cylinders fire on all four cylinders on wax if it ain't broken, don't fix it if it isn't broken, don't fix it
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