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Showing results for at the ready. Search instead for lengthy ready.
Synonyms

at the ready

Idioms  

  1. Available for immediate use, as in Umbrellas at the ready, we were prepared to brave the storm. This idiom was originally a military term in which the ready denoted the position of a firearm prepared to be raised and aimed or fired. [First half of 1800s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

On a foggy winter morning captain Khetsopon Nopsiri led a six-strong Thai army patrol along dirt tracks through the forest, assault rifles at the ready.

From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026

Check the weather forecasts, download all the maps on your Garmin, notify people of your plans, pack enough food and water and have emergency supplies at the ready.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2025

Hook it to your backpack or your belt loop and adventure worry-free with a beverage at the perfect temperature at the ready.

From Salon • Nov. 20, 2025

These were used to promote yet more investment opportunities - slideshows and card machines at the ready.

From BBC • Nov. 10, 2025

A farmer smiles nervously at approaching American troops, one with his weapon at the ready, 1967.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.