Also, break one's neck . Make a great effort, work very hard. For example, I've been breaking my back over this problem for the past week , or Don't break your neck to get there; we'll wait for you . Both versions of this expression, polite equivalents of break one's ass , transfer the literal fracture of one's back or neck to figurative exertion. However, break one's neck has the secondary connotation of proceeding with reckless speed, a sense also conveyed by the term breakneck pace . Originally this idiom alluded to literally breaking one's neck by rushing heedlessly along, but it has been used figuratively for the past 300 years. Also see break the back of