dog-eat-dog

[dawg-eet-dawg, dog-eet-dog]

adjective

1. marked by destructive or ruthless competition; without self-restraint, ethics, etc..

   It's a dog-eat-dog industry.

noun

1. complete egotism; action based on utter cynicism.

   The only rule of the marketplace was dog-eat-dog.

dog-eat-dog

1. Ruthlessly competitive: “You have to look out for your own interests; it's a dog-eat-dog world.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of dog eat dog¹

First recorded in 1930–35

Idioms and Phrases

Ruthless acquisition or competition, as in With shrinking markets, it's dog eat dog for every company in this field. This contradicts a Latin proverb which maintains that dog does not eat dog, first recorded in English in 1543. Nevertheless, by 1732 it was put as “Dogs are hard drove when they eat dogs” (Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia).

Example Sentences

“JUCO is … a dog-eat-dog world. So I think that kind of heightened everything and the sense or urgency to learn it.”

From Los Angeles Times

“You’d be almost like brothers if it wasn’t for being on opposite sidelines. It’s the kind of guy you’d send a Christmas card to, but you don’t, because you’re too busy trying to scratch each other’s eyeballs out. Nature of the business. Dog-eat-dog.”

From Los Angeles Times

Some may retire from Congress, others will run in newly-created districts against a favored Republican and others will be forced to face a fellow Democratic incumbent in dog-eat-dog primaries in redrawn districts.

From Salon

It's worth noting that, even before the invention of streaming, the world of US chat shows was always a competitive, dog-eat-dog world.

From BBC

In one episode, his response is, “It’s a dog-eat-dog world, and I’m wearing Milk-Bone underwear.”

From Los Angeles Times