at daggers drawn
- idiom
:
en conflicto abierto
- The two teams were at daggers drawn after a heated argument during the game.
Examples
-
This morning you were at daggers drawn.
-
This eventually led to a showdown between the Ahrars and the Ahmedis, which brought them at daggers drawn with each other.
Academic text (2018) -
And so began anew a routine that has been played out many times in the past 25 years, with Pollard's defenders and those who prosecuted him once again at daggers drawn.
Academic text (2011) -
Despite being colleagues, they are constantly at daggers drawn over differing opinions on the project.
-
The neighboring countries have been at daggers drawn for years, leading to a tense political climate.
Synonyms
60
4.8
Not agreeing with someone or something
23
7.0
People argue or fight angrily with each other
4
7.3
Not agreeing with someone and often angry about it
Not friendly with someone because of an argument
Antonyms
How Hostile
Surface Forms
Morphology
at + daggers + drawn
The constituents 'daggers' (weapons) and 'drawn' (pulled out) create a fairly direct image of people having weapons ready, which leads to hostility; a learner who knows those senses can plausibly infer the idea of open conflict. However, the phrase's fixed idiomatic shape ('at daggers drawn') and the less familiar past-participle use of 'drawn' make the relation partially metaphorical and potentially confusing for a B1 learner, so it is not fully transparent.
Etymology
At daggers drawn comes from the image of people taking out daggers, so the weapons are drawn and both sides look ready to fight. So, being at daggers drawn means being 'in open conflict' with someone.