with flying colors
- 1Extremely well; in an exceptional, noteworthy way that clearly stands out as a success.
Like a ship sailing home in victory with all its flags raised high.
He completed the certification exam with flying colors, scoring higher than anyone in his group.
The new bridge passed every safety inspection with flying colors.
Note
An idiom built on a naval picture: a ship coming home from battle with its flags, its colors, still flying. Today it almost always follows a verb of trial such as pass or come through, and it attaches to tests, inspections and evaluations. The American label belongs to the spelling, not the phrase. The idiom itself is shared, and writers outside the US keep the -our ending on the noun.
- 2Easily; achieving something with very little or no effort.
Like a knife sliding through warm butter: smooth and effortless.
The interns picked up the new software with flying colors, needing almost no training.
Our old car made it through the mountain pass with flying colors, never once straining.
Practice
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