Definify.com
Definition 2024
the_upper_hand
the upper hand
English
Noun
- (idiomatic) Advantage or control.
- 1855, Washington Irving, "Guests from Gibbet Island":
- There was no refusing him, for he had got the complete upper hand of the community, and the peaceful burghers all stood in awe of him.
- 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, ch. 23:
- [C]uriosity began to get the upper hand, and I determined I should have one look through the cabin window.
- 1911, Joseph Conrad, Under Western Eyes, ch. 1:
- There it was Razumov who had the upper hand, in a composed sense of his own superiority.
- 2003, Christine Gorman, "Playing Chicken With Our Antibiotics," Time, 14 Feb.:
- And because they live everywhere and reproduce quickly, bacteria have the upper hand.
- 1855, Washington Irving, "Guests from Gibbet Island":
Translations
(idiomatic) advantage
|
|