toe-to-toe

adjective or adverb

ˈtō-ˌtə-ˈtō 

: slugging it out at or as if at close range

a toe-to-toe confrontation over the new policy

Synonyms

• eyeball-to-eyeball
• face-to-face
• head-on
• head-to-head
• mano a mano
• one-on-one

Examples of toe-to-toe in a Sentence

mom-and-pop grocery stores are usually wildly outmatched when they go toe-to-toe with large chain stores

Recent Examples on the Web

The Steelers — who once stood toe-to-toe with Joe Burrow in a Week 13 shootout — averaged 14.2 points per game over the final five games (including playoffs). —Mike Defabo, The Athletic, 16 Jan. 2025

Kopylov and Curtis battled for nearly 15 minutes, trading shots and standing toe-to-toe in the process. —Brian Mazique, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025

So rather than going toe-to-toe in a Torrance Benihana with the snarling ex-con/ex-Long Beach high school football star Merrimen, he’s getting wasted in a French club with the affable Donnie (posing as Jean-Jacques, a wealthy diamond dealer), and drunkenly scootering to get shawarma. —Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2025

However, strong performances from him could help to create a rotation that go toe-to-toe with any team. —Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1942, in the meaning defined above