Learn English – What does “I’ll go you one better” mean

meaning

I'll go you one better, seem as you were so polite to ask me for permission.

Can someone please explain this to me? I've never heard the "go you one better" part.

Does this mean that a person will do something better than asked for?

Best Answer

This is a friendly colloquial expression which is used in two ways (you have correctly stated one of them in your question).

A willingness to provide something even more than requested

— Please could you tell me the way to the city centre?
— I'll go you one better, and drive you there.

— Do you know in which year the Berlin wall fell?
— I'll go you one better: I know the exact date and time.

A response which is similar to but greater than a previous statement by another person

— My computer was running very slowly today.
— I'll go you one better, mine stopped working entirely.

Related Solutions

Learn English – What does this mean: “I’ll be with you in a minute”

Well usually this is used when speaking face-to-face, and is taken to mean

I'm occupied right now, and I'll speak to you in some (short period of) time.

Not exactly one minute, but a short enough time. Similar usage to "Just a second" or "Gimme a sec"

~~If on the phone, it should probably mean he'll call back after a minute or so.~~

Updated:

As @Martha says - On the phone, this would likely mean you should hold. The correct statement if he intends to ring you back would be

"I'll get back to you in a minute".

Learn English – What does the expression ‘Do the fish’ mean

Well, I bit the bullet and asked the guy what the heck he meant (imagine that). Turns out he was referring to the oft-quoted teach a man to fish proverb.

He also clarified that this is not a common expression, just an idiosyncratic reference he invented and uttered spontaneously.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Learn English – What does this mean: “I’ll be with you in a minute”

Learn English – What does the expression ‘Do the fish’ mean

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