| 词源 |
tooth and nail. The Latin equivalent for this ancient phrase was toto corpore atque omnibus ungulis, “with all the body and every nail.” The French have a similar saying, too: bec et ongles, “beak and talons.” All mean the same: to fight with tooth and nails, biting and scratching, with weapons, with all the powers at one’s command. Figurative use of the expression in England brings us back to the early 16th century, and it was listed as a proverb then. |