to grab the bull by the horns
1
6.3
- idiom
- Informal
:
agarrar el toro por los cuernos
- I'm hoping J. Lo will grab the bull by the horns and produce something real and dynamic, that she doesn't just do this to ride the gay wave currently on mainstream television.
- just grab the bull by the horns
Why don't I, as we say, grab the bull by the horns or the dragon by the tooth and take him on?
- Why don't I, as we say, grab the bull by the horns or the dragon by the tooth and take him on?
Examples
-
When the project started to fall behind schedule, the team had to grab the bull by the horns and find a solution quickly.
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But it is up to you, to grab the bull by the horns.
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If life has taught me anything, it is to grab the bull by the horns.
-
Time to grab the bull by the horns and go for it.
Blog text (9) -
She taught me that sometimes you just have to grab the bull by the horns.
Fiction book (1997) -
Why don't I, as we say, grab the bull by the horns or the dragon by the tooth and take him on?
-
To succeed in business, you need to grab the bull by the horns and face challenges head-on.
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If you want to improve your performance, you must grab the bull by the horns and address your weaknesses.
Synonyms
359
4.4
Face a difficult problem or fear directly and bravely
38
4.1
To accept and deal with a difficult situation directly and bravely
9
4.2
Deal with a problem directly instead of avoiding it
4
5.6
To deal with a difficult problem directly and bravely
1
6.6
Face a difficult or painful situation quickly instead of delaying it
1
8.2
Face a difficult problem directly and act firmly
1
9.9
To confront a powerful person directly in their own place
To face a problem directly and try to solve it
To face a difficult problem directly and work hard to solve it
Antonyms
How Bold
310
4.1
∞
2.2
- Informal
1
6.3
204
3.4
161
2.8
∞
3.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
grab + the + bull + by + the + horn
The phrase evokes a clear, imageable action—seizing a bull by its horns—that maps directly onto the idea of tackling a dangerous or difficult problem head-on; a B1 learner who knows 'grab', 'bull' and 'horns' can plausibly infer this metaphorical meaning. Many languages use the same metaphor (e.g. Spanish, French, Portuguese), which makes the figurative mapping more predictable and accessible to learners.
Etymology
Grab the bull by the horns comes from the image of someone holding a dangerous bull by its horns to control the animal. That's why it means 'to face a difficult problem directly and with courage'.