Mile a Minute, a

Meaning of Idiom ‘A Mile A Minute’

A mile a minute means very fast or rapidly. ¹,²,³

Sentence Examples

“My son was so excited about the award his science teacher gave him he was talking a mile a minute.”

“Some kid just came through here on a motorbike going a mile a minute. He’s gonna get himself killed!”

“A tornado came through last night. It passed overhead but I was so scared. My heart was going a mile a minute.”

Origin

Used since the mid-1900s, this idiom derives from a time when traveling a mile a minute, or 60 miles per hour, was considered extremely fast. In fact, this speed was once considered impossible for human beings to travel without being injured or killed. Although today’s vehicles can travel much faster than this, the idiom has survived. ⁴

More Idioms Starting with M

• Music to My Ears
• Monkey Around
• Make Nice
• Million Times, a
• Make Eyes at Someone Meaning

More Automotive Relate Idioms

• Drive Into
• Kick the Tires
• Running On Fumes
• Side Street
• Gas Up

More Mile Idioms

• Miles Away, to be
• Go the Extra Mile

More Minute Idioms

• Any Second Now
• Give Me a Second/Minute
• In a Second or In a Minute
• New York Minute

More Minute Idioms

• Any Second Now
• Give Me a Second/Minute
• In a Second or In a Minute
• New York Minute

More Time Related Idioms

• Million Times, a
• Have Time to Kill
• Kill Time
• High Time
• Time is Money

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References

1. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms]. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
2. Ayto, John. Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms. Oxford: Oxford U, 2010.
3. Heacock, Paul. Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2010.
4. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms]. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.