bare-knuckle
or bare-knuck·led
[ bair-nuhk-uhl ]
/ ˈbɛərˈnʌk əl /
adjective
(of a boxer) wearing no boxing gloves: These are bare-knuckle kids who need to learn a higher level of boxing.
(of a boxing match or other fight) without gloves: a bare-knuckle brawl.
without regard for rules or niceties; rough-and-tumble: a bare-knuckle approach to judicial reform.
adverb
without boxing gloves: He’s a scrappy guy who likes to fight bare-knuckle.
in a manner that bypasses rules and niceties: If we have to take on these land developers bare-knuckle, we will.
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Sometimes bare·knuck·le, bare·knuck·led .
Words nearby bare-knuckle
barehanded, bare hands, with one's, bareheaded, Bareilly, bare infinitive, bare-knuckle, barelegged, barely, bare lymphocyte syndrome, bare-naked, Barenboim
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for bare-knuckle
The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, my third book, changed my life and put me on bare-knuckle terms with my abilities.
The Stacks: How The Berlin Wall Inspired John le Carré’s First Masterpiece|John le Carré|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEASTHow could it be that this word, and not “what” or “why,” has caused a bare-knuckle brawl at such a stratospheric social level?
After the bare-knuckle brawl Ben Quayle has faced, however, his brother may think twice about following his lead.
British Dictionary definitions for bare-knuckle
bare-knuckle
adjective
without boxing glovesa bare-knuckle fight
aggressive and without reservationsa bare-knuckle confrontation
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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