red in tooth and claw

Having, involving, or employing merciless and possibly cruel tactics during conflict or competition. Because there is a near-even split between the two parties in this state, politics tend to be red in tooth and claw come election time. Many want to do away with any and all regulation, allowing for a truly free market red in tooth and claw.

See also: and, claw, red, tooth

red in tooth and claw

LITERARY

If you describe a person, organization or activity as red in tooth and claw, you mean that they involve very competitive and sometimes cruel behaviour. My wife and I both now work for companies that are red in tooth and claw. He wanted to demonstrate that Labour is no longer red in tooth and claw, but a serious political party. Note: People talk about `nature red in tooth and claw' to describe the cruel way that wild creatures hunt and kill each other for food. This is a quotation from the poem `In Memoriam' (1850) by the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson. (Part 56, stanza 4)

See also: and, claw, red, tooth

Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

red in tooth and claw

involving savage or merciless conflict or competition.

This phrase originated as a quotation from Tennyson's ‘In Memoriam’ ( 1850 ): ‘Nature, red in tooth and claw’.

1998 Spectator Life is sharper on the shop floor, too; and for small business it is red in tooth and claw.

See also: and, claw, red, tooth

red in ˌtooth and ˈclaw

involving opposition or competition that is violent and without pity: nature, red in tooth and claw

See also: and, claw, red, tooth

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