present arms
Americannoun
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a position of salute in the manual of arms in which the rifle is held in both hands vertically in front of the body, with the muzzle upward and the trigger side forward.
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(for troops in formation not under arms) the hand salute.
Etymology
Origin of present arms
First recorded in 1750–60
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.
“I gave the command to present arms, and we raised our sabers for Kennedy to walk under, like a tunnel,” Broadus said.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 25, 2013
A guard of honor of Royal Marines stood at present arms on deck and the band played The Star-Spangled Banner.
From Time Magazine Archive
In return, other nations, including Russia, would have to promise to submit to real international control of atomic energy, and to spend two-thirds of their present arms budgets for "constructive ends."
From Time Magazine Archive
On the stone steps, the tall, booted, hawk-nosed Earl watched a company of soldiers, sailors and airmen click to "present arms," heard a military band play the final strain of God Save the King.
From Time Magazine Archive
Entering the north gate with his sixty blanketed conspirators, he found himself confronted by a double line of red-coated soldiers, their muskets held at "present arms."
From Ocean to Ocean on Horseback Being the Story of a Tour in the Saddle from the Atlantic to the Pacific; with Especial Reference to the Early History and Devel by Willard W. Glazier
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.
