armed to the teeth

Idioms

Overly well equipped or prepared, as in With her elaborate gown and makeup, she was armed to the teeth for her first New York appearance. The expression to the teeth meant “well equipped” in the 14th century, when knights often wore head-to-foot armor. The idiom, however, only gained currency in the mid-1800s, at first still applied to weapons or other military equipment. Today it is used still more figuratively.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

His smile is disarming, but his ideas are armed to the teeth.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 5, 2025

"If you are willing to have friends who are armed to the teeth you are making a choice. There has to come a time where you draw a line in the sand."

From BBC • Nov. 28, 2023

Despite its name, the DMZ and its vicinity are armed to the teeth.

From New York Times • Jul. 26, 2023

Even then, when Arisu is ambushed by an adversary armed to the teeth, Chishiya doesn’t help him, preferring to stand back and wait for the situation to sort itself out.

From Salon • Dec. 31, 2022

I was armed with books the way the navy goes to sea armed to the teeth.

From "Hole in My Life" by Jack Gantos

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023