At All Costs vs By Any Means

[natalia.kyrch]

Hello!

Is there a difference between 'at all costs' and 'by any means'?
An example sentence - I intend to win this competition at all costs/by any means.

Thanks!

 

[jutfrank]

Yes, the meaning is different.

If you say at all costs, it means you don't count cost as a prime factor—you don't really care what it costs. If you say by any means, it means you don't have one particular way of winning that you will commit to.