go the whole hog

The story

Origin uncertain; the following etymologies have been suggested: * A reference to using the whole of a hog’s carcass for food, leather, etc., without wasting any part; or specifically to a poem by the English poet William Cowper (1731–1800), “The Love of the World Reproved” (published 1782) in which uncertainty among Muslims about which parts of a hog are permitted as food leads to the whole animal being eaten. * A reference to hog (“(Ireland, New Zealand, UK, historical, slang) shilling; (US, obsolete, rare) ten-cent coin, dime”), possibly in the context of spending the entire sum of money.

First known use, by meaning

• from early 19th c. To do something as completely or entirely as possible; to hold back or reserve nothing.