set one's sights on

Meaning: To decide to try to get or achieve something.

Language: English

Literally: (Already vivid in English)

Example: “After winning the regional title, she set her sights on the Olympics.”

Category: Daily Life

Origin: From aiming a gun, whose sights are adjusted onto a target. The figurative use is found from the 20th century.

Equivalents in other languages

Spanish: poner la proa — literally: to put the prow
French: Jeter son dévolu sur quelque chose — literally: To cast one's devolution upon something

God forbid — Used to say that one hopes something bad will not happen.
kill them all and let God sort them out — A grim or joking call to act ruthlessly without distinguishing innocent from guilty.
play hooky — To skip school or work without permission.
sing someone's praises — To praise someone enthusiastically.
grasp all, lose all — If you try to get too much, you may end up with nothing.
the power behind the throne — Someone with no official title who secretly controls a leader.

a little bird told me — I learned it from a secret source I won't name.
put one's feet up — To relax and rest.
blow a gasket — To lose one's temper completely.
hearts and flowers — Excessive sentimentality.
born in a trunk — Raised in a family of traveling performers and in the business from childhood.
the road to hell is paved with good intentions — Good intentions are worthless, or even harmful, if they lead to bad actions.

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. — A relentless 'p' plosive drill; a peck is an old dry measure of about nine litres.
Unique New York. — Three words that jam the 'y/n/k' sequence together — repeat it and it collapses into 'you…
Pad kid poured curd pulled cod. — Alternating repetition — the consonants swap at the start of every other word, which is w…