“Flat out” is an English idiom meaning to work at maximum effort and speed. It was used in the 19th century to describe failure, but now commonly refers to hard work. It can also mean speaking without restrictions or reservations. Idioms like “flat out” allow for more conversational speech.
If someone is working “at full throttle,” it means they are working in a hurry at maximum effort. The phrase is an English idiom used whenever someone is working so hard that they won’t relax until the job is completed. This phrase was used in America in the early part of the 20th century, although it differs markedly from an earlier form of the phrase associated with bankruptcy. There is also another use of “flat out” which occurs when someone speaks without reservations or restrictions.
English speakers may choose to speak very appropriately, only using words as literally as possible. This may be correct, but it may also make it difficult for them to communicate with people who are more familiar with a conversational way of speaking. Instead of this rigid speaking technique, people often loosen up their speech with idioms. Idioms are phrases that can take on meanings that are very different from their literal definitions. The short phrase “flat out” is a popular idiom.
This phrase is most commonly used in terms of working people. If the phrase is used, it means that the person thus described is making a superlative effort. It also implies that the person is working at an extremely high speed to complete the job in the shortest time possible. For example, someone might say, “We worked flat out for two weeks to get the construction work done in time for the inspection.”
The strange thing about this idiom is how much it differs in meaning from a previous usage of the same idiom. In the 19th century, someone or something described as “flat out” was considered a major failure. At some point, the meaning of the phrase diverged from this to the more popular meaning that was used in America in the early part of the 20th century.
Another strange thing about this idiom is that it takes on another distinct meaning when used in a different context. When someone uses this phrase to describe some kind of conversation, it means that the conversation goes on without limits. There is a sense of candor attached to the phrase when used in this way. For example, consider the statement, “I didn’t want to hurt his feelings about him, but I made it clear he was being very rude the other night.”
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