in the teeth of

Idioms  

1. Straight into, confronting, as in The ship was headed in the teeth of the gale . [Late 1200s]

2. In opposition to or defiance of, as in She stuck to her position in the teeth of criticism by the board members . [Late 1700s] Also see fly in the face of .

3. Facing danger or threats, as in The tribe was in the teeth of starvation . [Early 1800s]

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Example Sentences

This only changes at Salah's behest, like when he stood outside St Mary's in the teeth of Storm Bert last November after scoring twice in a 3-2 win at Southampton to announce he was "probably more out than in" at Liverpool as contract negotiations were slow to progress.

From BBC

Back in 2009 the UK was in the teeth of a recession, following the global financial crisis.

From BBC

For 10 months, Crisp and others beat down the doors of government agencies, nongovernmental organizations and commercial enterprise to find the money to preserve it, but this was in the teeth of the Great Recession, and no one signed on.

From Los Angeles Times

"What took place on the South Downs was done in the teeth of warnings by social workers and the courts," he said, "and at a time when the defendants knew that their other children - four of them - had been removed from their care".

From BBC

It was only later, after the pandemic receded into our collective rear-view mirror, that I recognized another, underlying reason I talked money so much in the teeth of my frustration and fear.

From Salon