Dictionary.com

no ifs or buts

Save This Word!

Also, no ifs, ands, or buts. No reservations, restrictions, or excuses, as in You'd better be there tomorrow, and no ifs, ands, or buts about it. This expression uses the conjunctions to stand for the conditions and objections that they introduce. The earliest phrase to appear was ifs and ands in the 1600s. This phrase is actually an emphatic redundancy, for and often meant “if.” But was tacked on to this pair soon afterward.

QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.
His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby no ifs or buts

no-host, nohow, NOI, -noia, n.o.i.b.n., no ifs or buts, noil, nointer, noir, no-iron, noise
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

Words related to no ifs or buts

certain, evident, indisputable, irrefutable, obvious, unassailable, unquestionable, actual, beyond doubt, beyond question, binding, clear, compulsory, for sure, inarguable, incontestable, incontrovertible, indubitable, manifest, necessary
FEEDBACK