put one's best foot forward

English

Alternative forms

• put one's best foot foremost

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Verb

put one's best foot forward (third-person singular simple present puts one's best foot forward, present participle putting one's best foot forward, simple past and past participle put one's best foot forward)

1. (idiomatic) To show oneself in the best or most positive way possible; to make a favorable impression.

   Try to put your best foot forward at all times during a job interview.

   • 2020 September 27, Alex McLevy, “With Smile, Katy Perry is desperately trying to have fun again”, in The A.V. Club‎^[1]:

     Unsurprisingly, Perry puts her best foot forward on opener “Never Really Over,” a song that not only maintains a catchy, hummable refrain, but also ironically doubles as a sort of mission statement for the artist.

Translations

make favorable impression

• Afrikaans: die beste beentjie voorsit
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 留一個好印象／留一个好印象 (liú yīgè hǎo yìnxiàng), 全力以赴 (zh) (quánlìyǐfù)

• Finnish: näyttää paras puolensa
• French: se montrer sous son meilleur jour (fr)
• Italian: fare buona impressione, fare del proprio meglio
• Russian: показа́ть себя́ с лучше́й стороны́ (pokazátʹ sebjá s lučšéj storoný)
• Swedish: visa framfötterna (sv) (show the front feet)