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to kick some tail

to kick some tail

1 8.8
Beat someone by a lot
  • idiom
  • Slang
translation icon : dar una paliza
  • I'm going out to find the furry sons-of-fishes that did this and kick some tail!

Examples

  • With determination and strategy, they planned to kick some tail in the upcoming tournament.

  • We're gonna kick some tail for sure.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • You man up and always be on guard and prepared at a given moment to go kick some tail.

    Blog text (3)
  • Let's go kick some tail!

  • -Kick some tail, buddy.

  • Let's kick some tail.

  • After months of training, the team was ready to kick some tail in the championship game.

  • The athlete promised his fans he would kick some tail in his next match.

Synonyms

to beat
vsto kick some tail
1.4

To defeat another person or team in a contest

adds the sense of a clear, often decisive outperforming
to beat out
vsto kick some tail
49 3.8

Defeat others in a contest to win a job or prize

emphasizes decisive or large-margin defeat rather than a narrow win
to kick someone's ass
vsto kick some tail
  • Offensive
45 9.0

To beat or punish someone very badly

means beating someone decisively without necessarily implying physical punishment
to whip
vsto kick some tail
36 5.5

To beat someone easily by a large amount

is similar but focuses more generally on decisive outperforming
to whup
vsto kick some tail
  • Informal
33 8.6

To beat someone easily in a game or fight

covers the same decisive beating idea in broader competitive situations
to whoop
vsto kick some tail
  • Slang
32 4.2

To beat someone easily in a game or contest

focuses on beating or outperforming someone often with clear decisiveness
to kick butt
vsto kick some tail
  • Slang
18 8.5

To do very well and win a game or contest

is more about defeating opponents rather than only performing well
to kick-ass
vsto kick some tail
  • Offensive
11 8.7

To beat someone by a large amount in a contest or game

is the same decisive defeat idea without the slang adjective form
to beat the pants off
vsto kick some tail
  • Informal
3 7.7

Win easily by a lot against another person or team

shares strong decisiveness but is a more general informal phrase
to kick ass and take names
vsto kick some tail
  • Offensive
3 9.9

To do very well and act confidently, often in a forceful way

focuses on beating others decisively rather than on confident bravado
to beat the stuffing out of
vsto kick some tail
  • Offensive
1 9.0

Hit someone many times until they are badly hurt

is about decisive defeat in contests, not specifically physical harm
to beat someone's ass
vsto kick some tail
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To defeat someone completely, often physically or in a game, used in rude speech

uses the same decisive meaning but without vulgar or physical tone
to wallop
vsto kick some tail
  • Informal
1 6.7

To beat someone very easily and completely in a game or contest

expresses the same total defeat idea without stressing the sound or force
to knock off one's perch
vsto kick some tail
  • Informal
1 7.9

To defeat the person or team at the top and take their place

centres on beating someone directly, not necessarily changing their status
to score off
vsto kick some tail
  • UK
7.4

To get an advantage over someone by doing better than them

is focused more on clear, often final defeat rather than mere advantage
to pip to the post
vsto kick some tail
  • UK
9.2

Beat someone at the very last moment in a contest

implies a clearer, often less narrow decisive defeat
to overbeat
vsto kick some tail
4.9

Defeat an opponent easily in a game or contest

matches the decisive defeat idea but is a less common variant

Antonyms

1.0

Fail to win a game or contest

How Decisive

to crush
386 4.7
to trounce
14 7.5
to kick some tail
  • Slang
1 8.8
to beat
1.4

Surface Forms

kick some tail infinitive
kicked some tail past participle
kicking some tail present participle
kicks some tail third person singular

Morphology

kick + some + tail

The sense 'to defeat or outperform' is not predictably built from the literal meanings of 'kick' (to strike), 'some' (unspecified), and 'tail' (an animal appendage or non-defined here); knowing the words would not lead a B1 learner to the figurative meaning. This phrase is slang/idiomatic (comparable to 'kick someone's ass') and its defeative meaning is language-specific and unpredictable, so it is opaque to learners.

Etymology

Kick some tail is slang that comes from a rough image: to kick someone's tail, meaning their rear, and make them fall back or run away. One popular story says that image of forcing someone to retreat turned into the idea 'to defeat or outperform someone, often decisively', so people use it to mean winning by a lot.