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- DictionaryBite the bullet
- ▪ decide to do something difficult or unpleasant that one has been putting off or hesitating over
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to force yourself to perform an unpleasant or difficult action or to be brave in a difficult situation: I decided I had to bite the bullet and take a couple of math classes even though I knew they were hard.
What's the meaning of the phrase 'Bite the bullet'? Accept the inevitable impending hardship and endure the resulting pain with fortitude. What's the origin of the phrase 'Bite the bullet'?
Biting the bullet" is a metaphor which is used to describe a situation, often a debate, where one accepts an inevitable impending hardship or hard-to-refute point, and then endures the resulting pain with fortitude.
face up to doing something difficult or unpleasant; stoically avoid showing fear or distress. This phrase dates from the days before anaesthetics, when wounded soldiers were given a bullet or similar solid object to clench between their teeth when undergoing surgery.
To bite the bullet means to face difficulty head-on and with courage. It likely originated with the habit of using one’s teeth to help load a gun, as well as the practice of chewing on a soft lead musket ball to offset thirst, boredom, and pain.
Oct 8, 2023 · On its face, “Bite the Bullet” elicits the imagery of someone literally biting down on a bullet, perhaps as an act of determination. Figurative Meaning. More commonly, the idiom metaphorically suggests confronting a challenging or unpleasant scenario with bravery, indicating a decision to endure or push through adversity with stoicism.
To bite the bullet is to accept or confront a difficult situation with courage and stoicism; to accept the truth of a situation; to bravely pay the price of a bad situation; to force yourself to do something you dislike.
