swing for the fences

English

Alternative forms

• swing for the fence

Verb

swing for the fences

1. (US, baseball, softball) To swing at the ball as hard as possible, with the aim of getting a home run, increasing the chance of missing the ball.

   Don't swing for the fences unless it's an easy ball, be content with running part way.

2. (US, idiomatic) To do something extremely ambitious, especially rashly.

   I'm not going to swing for the fences tomorrow, but I'm hoping my speech will be warmly received.

Usage notes

• Not normally used in a positive sense, but mainly to caution against being overly rash.