English Explanatory Dictionary

tooth and nail

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adv
  1. Viciously; with all one's strength or power; without holding back.

Word forms

tooth and nail with tooth and nail

Etymology

From the Middle English phrase (with) nayles and teþ (“viciously, ferociously”, literally “(with) nails and teeth”).

Synonyms

tooth and claw tooth, fang, and claw

Related words

red in tooth and claw
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