shoot bolt

shoot (one's) bolt

To exhaust oneself doing some task and thus struggle to complete it. Try to pace yourself—if you shoot your bolt now, you'll never make it through all 18 holes.
See also: bolt, shoot
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

shoot (one's) bolt

Slang
To do all within one's power; exhaust all of one's resources or capabilities.
See also: bolt, shoot
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

shoot one's bolt, to

To have tried one’s utmost; to have spent all of one’s resources. This term comes from medieval archery and was a well-known proverb by the early thirteenth century: “A fool’s bolt is soon shot.” The bolt was a short, heavy, blunt-headed arrow fired with a crossbow, and the archer who used up all his bolts at once, leaving him with none, was regarded as a fool. The modern (twentieth-century) counterpart is to shoot one’s wad. This term comes from gambling, the “wad” in question being a roll of bank notes, but it has likewise been extended to mean spending all of one’s resources. Bernard Malamud used the expression (Tenants, 1971): “I want to be thought of as a going concern, not a freak who had published a good first novel and shot his wad.”
See also: shoot, to
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer
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References in periodicals archive ?
It may be possible to upgrade to shoot bolt locking or SAC bolt locks for additional security.
Also look for multi-point locks which incorporate shoot bolt dead locks and security hinges.
Vers turns out to be an Earthling named Carol Danvers though she's also, of course, Captain Marvel, able to shoot bolts of fire from her hands -- an impressive superpower but a bit generic, like a lot of these Marvel hotshots.
How much fun can it be pretending to be a Lego Ninja warrior able to shoot bolts of coloured light from your hands to bring down enemies on a 3D screen?
The company uses Profile 22 PVC frames which have a number of benefits including high performance 70mm Upvc profile, fully A rated frames and double glazed units, four chambered profile fully sculptured, fully reinforced, six-point MACO shoot bolts and optional anti-jemmy blocks for extra peace of mind, internally beaded and doors fitted with eight-point locks with Yale six lever barrel.
Do crossbow shooters shoot bolts while vertical archers shoot arrows?
Friction hinges, security shoot bolts for doors, door-mounted ventilators and sash catches for windows are on offer and the company has been well positioned to take advantage of a new move back into chrome fittings.