do or die

present singular third person does or dies · participle present doing or dying · past did or died · participle past done or died · alternative do-or-die · alternative either do or die

1. idiomaticTo act with sufficient urgency to result in either immediate success or immediate failure.

   Lay the proud Usurpers low! / Tyrants fall in every foe! / Liberty's in every blow! / Let us do or die!

   1793, Robert Burns, Robert Bruce's March To Bannockburn 6th stanza.4th line

   2 more examples

   Emanuel: Bless us, dear Fortune! / Armusia: Let us be worthy of it in our courage, and Fortune must befriend us. Come, all sever; but keep still within sight: when the flame rises let's meet, and either do or die.

   1621 (first literary attestation), John Fletcher, The Island Princess act 2.scene 2

   Here is a mantra, a short one, that I give you. You may imprint it on your hearts and let every breath of yours give expression to it. The mantra is : ‘Do or Die’. We shall either free India or die in the attempt; we shall not live to see the perpetuation of our slavery.

   1942, Mahatma Gandhi, Address before the A.I.C.C. at Bombay on 08/08/1942, 8th paragraph at the beginning

alternative do-or-die · alternative either do or die

1. idiomaticnot comparableRequiring a determined or desperate effort to avoid the consequences of failure.

   Clinton and Dole brought different needs to the debate. For Dole it was do or die. He had to hit Clinton hard but without seeming harsh, a conundrum for him all year.

   1996 October 14, “Clinton v. Dole: Let the Debates Begin”, in Time