have the guts

Idioms  

1. Possess the courage, as in Does he have the guts to dive off the high board? This expression replaces the earlier and now obsolete sense of stomach as “courage,” a usage from the early 1500s. [Slang; late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

When the market is truly swimming in red, will you actually have the guts to buy?

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026

Fuzz guitars thrust the song forwards, as 32-year-old Sampa, full name Sampa Tembo, defiantly raps: "They don't have the guts to match my prowess."

From BBC • Dec. 19, 2025

“They have to have the guts to put their stars on the table.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2025

But he doesn't have the guts to admit it, instead continuing to play-act like he's a great man, even though no one is buying the act.

From Salon • Dec. 26, 2023

I had to maximize my expectations for myself because no one else would, and I had to have the guts to pursue what I wanted even though it meant charting my own path.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad