What does take the bull by the horns mean?

take the bull by the horns

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.69 in modern English

Syllables: take the bul-l by the horns
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Meaning

verb

To deal with a matter in a direct manner, especially to confront a difficulty rather than avoid it.

Example Sentences

"Wordsworth has a system which disposes him to take the bull by the horns and offend public taste."
""Then why couldn' ye take the bull by the horns an' march in by the front door?""
"[H]e was ready to take the bull by the horns and pay for his meal himself."
"In Korea General MacArthur took the bull by the horns and threw seven divisions into an all-out drive to clear North Korea."
""Should I tell her? Should I send someone else?" he said yesterday. "I took the bull by the horns. I gave her the diagnosis. It was the most difficult time of my life.""

Inflected Forms

takes the bull by the horns (present, singular) taking the bull by the horns (participle, present) took the bull by the horns (past) taken the bull by the horns (participle, past)

Phrases

beard the lion in his den grasp the nettle seize the day bit between one's teeth grab life by the balls grab life by the horns grab life by the throat get down to brass tacks

Frequently Paired Words

beard the lion in his den grasp the nettle seize the day bit between one's teeth grab life by the balls grab life by the horns grab life by the throat get down to brass tacks

Synonyms

grab the bull by the horns