Jump To:

• straight-from-the-shoulder
  straight-from-the-shoulder

  adjective

  direct, honest, and forceful in expression; outspoken.
• straight from the shoulder
  straight from the shoulder

  In a direct, forthright manner, as in I'll tell you, straight from the shoulder, that you'll have to do better or they'll fire you. This expression comes from boxing, where it describes a blow delivered with full force. Its figurative use dates from the late 1800s.

straight-from-the-shoulder

American  

[streyt-fruhm-thuh-shohl-der] / ˈstreɪt frəm ðəˈʃoʊl dər /

adjective

1. direct, honest, and forceful in expression; outspoken.

---

straight from the shoulder Idioms  

1. In a direct, forthright manner, as in I'll tell you, straight from the shoulder, that you'll have to do better or they'll fire you. This expression comes from boxing, where it describes a blow delivered with full force. Its figurative use dates from the late 1800s.

---

Example Sentences

Federal Reserve Loard Chairman Thomas B. McCabe, a Pennsylvania banker and businessman before he was a Government official, this week gave them a straight-from-the-shoulder businessman's answer.

From Time Magazine Archive

A forceful, straight-from-the-shoulder pulpit speaker, he still likes to pose direct questions to his congregations.

From Time Magazine Archive

In his straight-from-the-shoulder critique of U. S. shipping last year, Joseph Patrick Kennedy, then commission chairman, recommended Government-run training schools for seamen as one sure way of insuring a skilled personnel.

From Time Magazine Archive

Miller has always been at his best on such field trips, speaking fluent, straight-from-the-shoulder Spanish and handling himself with tact and wit.

From Time Magazine Archive

They have better manners, perhaps, than we have, but they’re sensible, straight-from-the-shoulder men of business.

From The White Mice by Gibbs, George