law of the jungle

noun

1. a system or mode of action in which the strongest survive, presumably as animals in nature or as human beings whose activity is not regulated by the laws or ethics of civilization.

law of the jungle

noun

1. a state of ruthless competition or self-interest

Word History and Origins

Origin of law of the jungle¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Idioms and Phrases

Survival of the strongest, as in The recent price war among airlines was governed by the law of the jungle. This term, alluding to the jungle as a place devoid of ethics where brutality and self-interest reign, was first used by Rudyard Kipling in The Jungle Book (1894).

Example Sentences

President Xi gave a toast to say the world must "never return to the law of the jungle".

From BBC

"At present, tariff wars and trade wars are disrupting the global economic and trade system, power politics and the law of the jungle are prevalent and international rules and order have suffered severe impacts," he said, alluding to Washington's tariff measures against India and other countries.

From BBC

"The level of that can be discussed, the capacity can be discussed, but to say that you should not have enrichment, you should have zero enrichment, and if do you not agree, we will bomb you - that is the law of the jungle," the deputy foreign minister said.

From BBC

Thankfully, we here are protected from Chinese takeover: by tariffs, by law, and by law of the jungle.

From Slate

At a recent event to mark the opening of 218 low-rent flats in the southern city of Seville, he declared that Spaniards "want us to act, they want the housing market to operate according to the law of reason, of social justice, not the law of the jungle; they want to ensure that vulture funds and speculators are not doing whatever they like".

From BBC