come to blows

idiom

: to begin fighting : to begin hitting each other
They almost came to blows during their argument.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Goodwin, Maggie and Marcel assist victims of a hit-and-run incident; Halstead tries to diagnose a patient with seizures; Asher and Archer come to blows with Jack Dayton. Olivia Mccormack, Washington Post, 18 Jan. 2023 The Jan 16 episode of begins with a replay of the last couple minutes of the previous episode as Jen and Lisa nearly come to blows on a shuttle bus headed to southern Utah. Scott D. Pierce, The Salt Lake Tribune, 16 Jan. 2022 Still, when Ellie does come to blows with an enemy, the fighting is fluid yet challenging. Eliana Dockterman, Time, 12 June 2020 Hnath’s play is ultimately unsettling, deeply so when the brothers finally come to blows. Christine Dolen, Sun Sentinel, 12 Dec. 2022 While the negotiations remain tough, Britain and the European Union are stressing progress and seem less likely to come to blows. New York Times, 10 Feb. 2022 Birds will sometimes come to blows, parrying with their talons and beaks. Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 16 Nov. 2021 How and why did these groups come to blows later on? Randy Dotinga, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Apr. 2021 While Gifty and her mother do not come to blows or have knockdown arguments, her mother essentially sleeps through the rest of the novel, unable to get out of bed. Jennifer Wilson, The New Republic, 6 Nov. 2020 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'come to blows.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Dictionary Entries Near come to blows

Cite this Entry

“Come to blows.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/come%20to%20blows. Accessed 1 Jun. 2023.

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