Reader question:

Please explain "and then some", as in this sentence: We'll do everything in our power to help, and then some.

My comments:

"And then some", literally, means "AND THEN SOME more", something more, something in addition.

In our example, this just shows the speaker means to say that they want to do everything they can to help.

Your question is, when you've done everything, how can you do more? You cannot but I'm not here to nitpick.

"And then some", you see, is an age-old idiom that has become a cliche. This means that sometimes people say it automatically, say it out of habit, say it just as a form of emphasis and you're not supposed to take it too seriously.

For example, a hotel manager may boast that their rooms have everything you want and then some. No-one is going to take it word for word.

I mean, nobody is going to pin the manager down and wangle out of him exactly what "and then some" stands for. I'm speaking metaphorically, of course, I don't mean anyone is pinning the manager down to the floor in the lobby.

Well, at any rate, check out these media examples to see if you can take "and then some" verbatim or just metaphorically:

1. Common wisdom today tells us that timing the market doesn’t work. As hard as investors may try, earning massive profits by timing buy and sell orders around future market price movements is an elusive concept.

However, some investors can still profit from timing the market in a smaller, more reactionary way. If you are interested in tempting your fate with market timing, follow along to find out how it works and what might pay off.

What It Means to Time the Market

Timing the market is an investment strategy where investors buy and sell stocks based on expected price fluctuations. If investors can correctly guess when the market will go up and down, they can make corresponding investments to turn that market move into profit.

For example, if an investor expects the market to move up on economic news next week, that investor might want to buy a broad market index fund, an industry-focused ETF, or single stocks that he or she expects to go up, leading to a profit. Similarly, an investor can buy options, short positions, or take advantage of other investor tools to capture profits from market movements.

While this is great in theory, in practice it is seemingly impossible to make work on a consistent basis. Some investors hit it right every once in a while, but earning a profit from timing the market repeatedly is a pipedream for most.

...

Taking Advantage of Small Market Dips

Predicting the next major market dip may be more difficult than winning at Blackjack in Las Vegas, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find a profit when the market dips.

In 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, a move dubbed Brexit. The following morning on June 24, the Dow fell 500 points while the S&P 500 fell 58 points in the first few minutes of trading. However, by the end of July, the markets had recovered and then some. It would have been a perfect moment to swoop in, buy a broad market fund, and sell for a quick profit.

Major political events, economic announcements, and mergers and acquisitions activity can all lead to market overreactions. They often behave just like Brexit, offering astute investors an opening for a profitable series of trades.

- When Timing the Market Can Actually Work, TheBalance.com, August 2, 2019.

2. It's Oscars night, and the stars have started to arrive looking like a million bucks and then some ... with a wide palette of fashion choices that should please everyone.

Some of the stars who've shown up so far to the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles ... Laura Dern, Bong Joon-ho, Harvey Keitel, Mindy Kaling, Regina King, Sigourney Weaver, Mario Lopez, Zazie Beetz, Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, John Cho, Diane Warren, Blac Chyna, Erin Lim, Billy Porter, America Ferrera, Chrissy Metz, Idina Menzel, Kelly Ripa and more.

Spike Lee showed up as well, rocking a purple and gold suit with the number 2-4 emblazoned across his collar to honor Kobe. Spike's a big Knicks fan ... so it's a big deal.

- THE STARS ARE READY TO MEET OSCAR ...TMZ.com, February 9, 2020.

3. The Penguins thought they had a pretty good idea of what they were seeking when they signed Brandon Tanev as a free agent last summer.

They figured he could give the lineup an infusion of speed, and he has.

They thought he'd add a physical element to their bottom-six, which he has done.

They felt he would be an effective penalty-killer, and he's embraced that role.

What they didn't anticipate -- and with good reason -- was that Tanev would be a fairly consistent goal-scorer. After all, he had gotten just 24 in 195 career games in Winnipeg, an average of one every 8.13 games.

And they certainly didn't have any reason to count on him to score more than an occasional goal of real consequence, considering that only two of those 24 with the Jets had been game-winners.

Which means that it might be time to re-think precisely what they can expect from Tanev.

He has, after all, scored 11 goals in the first 52 games -- an average of one every 4.7 games -- and no fewer than four of those have been game-winners, including the one that provided the Penguins' margin of victory in their 4-3 decision at Washington Sunday:

That means Tanev is tied with Jake Guentzel, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust and Jared McCann for the team lead in game-winners, which is a stat that's pretty tough to overlook.

Unless, it seems, you are Brandon Tanev, since he professed to be unaware of it.

"You don't really pay attention to that," he said after the Penguins' hour-long practice at the Ice Sports Forum here today. "You get fortunate bounces sometimes. ... Nobody pays too much attention to those personal accolades. It's all about the team game."

Oh, and he has put up a few other statistics of note along the way. He leads the Penguins with 192 hits -- that's 68 more than Zach Aston-Reese, who ranks second among their forwards -- and has 54 blocked shots, most among their forwards.

While the wisdom of giving him a six-year contract won't be clear for several more years, it's safe to say that the Penguins are pleased with the early return on their investment.

"I think he's the guy we thought we were getting, and then some," Mike Sullivan said. "He's been a real important player for us. We knew he was going to be a guy who was going to bring us an element of speed, an element of physicality, he was going to be hard to play against. But he's really added an offensive dimension, as well."

- Tanev is ‘the guy we thought we were getting, and then some’, DKPittsburghSports.com, February 4, 2020.

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About the author:

Zhang Xin is Trainer at chinadaily.com.cn. He has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.

（作者：張欣 編輯：丹妮）