toe to toe

1 of 2

phrase

: facing one another

toe-to-toe

2 of 2

adjective or adverb

ˈtō-ˌtə-ˈtō 

: slugging it out at or as if at close range

a toe-to-toe confrontation over the new policy

Synonyms of toe to toe

Adjective or adverb

• head-to-head
• one-on-one
• head-on
• face-to-face
• eyeball-to-eyeball

Examples of toe to toe in a Sentence

Adjective or adverb

mom-and-pop grocery stores are usually wildly outmatched when they go toe-to-toe with large chain stores

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective or adverb

Playing teams operating with considerably lower budgets and less quality meant Palace invariably confronted opponents who sat deep and refused to go toe-to-toe for fear of offering the space in which Palace might flourish in transition. —Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 28 May 2026

Inspired by Tony Gilroy’s 2007 directorial debut Michael Clayton, Down and Kay completely transform Industry in its fourth season to introduce new, larger-than-life characters to go toe-to-toe with the original cast in a high-stakes global conspiracy. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 26 May 2026

Meanwhile, Townsend is a revelation, and Alix Truong stood toe-to-toe with Waters for the win. —Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026

The armor was not upgraded to match, however, which prevented the Firefly from going toe-to-toe with the heavier German models. —Matthew S Williams, Interesting Engineering, 20 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective Or Adverb

circa 1942, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for toe to toe

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau