Phrase guide

red in tooth and claw

adj · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

adj

Meaning 1

Characterized by uncaring, amoral ruthlessness or brutality, especially of a kind seen as reflecting the way of things in nature.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • We love nature, but nature doesn't love us. One night in the Amazon rainforest will show us that nature is red in tooth and claw.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem In Memoriam A.H.H.