fighting words

Idioms  

1. A statement bound to start a quarrel or fight. It is often expressed as them's fighting words, as in You say your father's smarter than mine? Them's fighting words. The ungrammatical use of them's for “those are” emphasizes the folksy tone of this colloquialism, first recorded in Ring Lardner's Gullible's Travels (1917).

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Example Sentences

Employers resented Roosevelt’s pro-labor stance, as well as his fighting words attacking “economic royalists.”

From Slate • Mar. 17, 2025

It's about one company claiming that another company's defamatory actions caused it to lose business, not about "fighting words" or incitement to violence.

From Salon • Apr. 16, 2023

There are exceptions for libel, incitement, obscenity and fighting words, and one for “true threats,” which is at issue in Mr. Counterman’s case.

From New York Times • Feb. 20, 2023

These are fighting words that have spurred many more Ukrainians to learn and use their language.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 30, 2022

For all her fighting words she gave no overpowering aid—not yet; father and son must prove their mettle still.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer