at sword's point
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Also, at swords' points. Antagonistic, hostile, as in Father and son were at swords' points. Dating from the days when swords were used to settle quarrels, the idiom today generally signifies only a bitter quarrel.
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Words nearby at sword's point
at someone's heels, at someone's mercy, at someone's request, at someone's service, at stake, at sword's point, att., attaboy, attacca, attach, attaché
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.