Meanings
- idiomaticFurther than; doing more than is expected or required.
Putting in overtime with no pay is above and beyond the call of duty.
2 more examples
The hospital staff often go above and beyond what is required of them.
And what incredible access we were given (and thus passed on via the magic of television to a potentially huge audience), because of the work put in by the production team and TfL staff going above and beyond the call of duty.
2021 June 30, Tim Dunn, “How we made... Secrets of the London Underground”, in RAIL, number 934, page 49
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
Shortened from the phrase above and beyond the call of duty, referring to heroic behavior during a military operation (“conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty”), traditionally used in citations of awards of a U.S. Medal of Honor.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 超出, 超出預期 /超出预期
- 超出 (chāochū)doing more than is expected
- 超出預期 /超出预期 (chāochū yùqī)doing more than is expected
Finnish ylittää velvollisuutensa, ylittää velvollisuutensa
- ylittää velvollisuutensadoing more than is expected
- ylittää velvollisuutensadoing more than is expected
French au-delà, au-delà
- au-delàdoing more than is expected
- au-delàdoing more than is expected
German über etwas hinaus, darüber hinaus
- über etwas hinausdoing more than is expected
- darüber hinausdoing more than is expected
Cite this entry
above and beyond. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/above%20and%20beyond
“above and beyond.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/above%20and%20beyond. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “above and beyond,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/above%20and%20beyond.
Source: above and beyond on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.