ax to grind

Idioms  

1. A selfish aim or motive, as in The article criticized the new software, but the author had an ax to grind, as its manufacturer had fired his son. This frequently used idiom comes from a story by Charles Miner, published in 1811, about a boy who was flattered into turning the grindstone for a man sharpening his ax. He worked hard until the school bell rang, whereupon the man, instead of thanking the boy, began to scold him for being late and told him to hurry to school. “Having an ax to grind” then came into figurative use for having a personal motive for some action. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

It has no ideological ax to grind, although it makes a persuasive case for the expansiveness of American poetry as a parallel to the definition of Americanness itself.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025

He didn’t come off as a man with an ax to grind, but a small, petty individual who had been taken advantage of by a much more powerful man he all but worshipped.

From Slate • May 14, 2024

In the early days, if you had an ax to grind and knew what you were talking about, you could write a letter that might wind up on the front page.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2024

The prosecutors pushed back that Yeartie was a disgruntled former employee with an ax to grind against Willis.

From Salon • Feb. 16, 2024

She was either a detective, the Madame finally decided, or, she was a fake medium herself, and had some unknown ax to grind.

From The Come Back by Wells, Carolyn