at arm's length

Idioms  

1. At a distance, avoiding intimacy or familiarity, as in Bill hated seeing his colleagues outside the office, preferring to keep all of them at arm's length, or She was friendly only when he was safely at arm's length. Now often used with the verb keep, this term for distancing oneself from a person, organization, or issue originated as at arm's end but developed its current form by the mid-1600s.

---

Example Sentences

The two planets will appear to be about the same distance in the sky as the width of your little finger held out at arm's length.

From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026

Roosevelt disliked Woodruff and kept him at arm’s length, although he did allow Pinchot to hire Woodruff at the Agriculture Department.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026

While in space, the crew spoke of the surreal sights of our dusty, rugged natural satellite, appearing about the size of a bowling ball at arm’s length, suspended in the nothingness.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

"At this distance the Moon will appear to the crew to be about the size of a basketball held at arm’s length."

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

She hugged me back, then pulled away and held me at arm’s length.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman