bring a knife to a gunfight en · VERB
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Meanings
-
(idiomatic) To enter into a confrontation or other challenging situation without being adequately equipped or prepared.
Isn't that just like a wop? Brings a knife to a gun fight.
1987, David Mamet, The Untouchables:That is why one should never bring a knife to a gunfight, a worm should not challenge Godzilla, and a chump should never box a boxer.
1994, Gus Lee, China Boy, →ISBN, page 310:[W]e can shoot down missiles. . . . Our Kingfisher sonars can detect mines. . . . Our ships are hardened against chemical and biological weapons. But how do you stop a torpedo? . . . The best engineers in the business agree that nearly every class of torpedo currently being deployed has the capacity to sink one of our ships with a single shot. . . . [W]e are the poor bastards that brought a knife to a gunfight.
2006, Jeff Edwards, Torpedo, →ISBN, page xiii:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| brought a knife to a gunfight | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| brought a knife to a gunfight | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| bringing a knife to a gunfight | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| brings a knife to a gunfight | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| take a knife to a gunfight | alternative | lexicographic |
Relateds
fight fire with fire · use a sledgehammer to crack a nut · shoot an elephant with a BB gun
Translations (5)
es a la guerra sin fusil (to be inadequately equipped) · cmn 拿著雞蛋碰石頭 /拿著鸡蛋碰石头 (to be inadequately equipped) · pl przyjść nieprzygotowany (to be inadequately equipped) · fi lähteä soitellen sotaan (to be inadequately equipped) · pl przychodzić nieprzygotowany (to be inadequately equipped)