How to Use tooth and nail in a Sentence

tooth and nail

adverb
  • I'll fight tooth and nail to win the finals.
  • Starbucks has fought these efforts tooth and nail along the way.
    — Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025
  • Mo was always going to fight tooth and nail, no matter what.
    — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 25 May 2026
  • People could have been fighting tooth and nail to keep me from being there.
    — Clayton Davis, Variety, 26 May 2026
  • And so companies are going to fight tooth and nail to get that 2%.
    — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 6 May 2026
  • The Dodgers have rolled, while the Blue Jays fought tooth and nail to make it to the Fall Classic.
    — Ryan Canfield, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2025
  • The Cowboys had to fight tooth and nail to pull out the win against one of the worst teams in the NFL from a season ago.
    — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Sep. 2025
  • Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will likely resist tooth and nail.
    — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 14 Dec. 2025
  • Ex-Prince Andrew fighting 'tooth and nail' to keep daughters protected from royal fallout.
    — FOXNews.com, 21 Nov. 2025
  • That likely means that businesses will have to fight tooth and nail for any chance at a refund — even though the government keeps meticulous records of all tariff payments.
    — Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN Money, 20 Feb. 2026
  • Despite the fact that warning labels on cigarettes have saved millions of lives, the tobacco industry fought tooth and nail against them to keep consumers in the dark.
    — Alan K. Chen, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
  • Trump has fought tooth and nail in court to suspend wind energy projects that are fully permitted, under contract and under construction across the eastern seaboard.
    — Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
  • His focus, evidenced by not only his words but his day-to-day demeanor, has always been to fight tooth and nail for all the guys who were smoking cigars inside the locker room Sunday night.
    — Michael-Shawn Dugar, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2026
  • Lander said a Democratic majority should be prepared to fight tooth and nail to force the president to accept a budget that delivers on their promises.
    — Marcia Kramer, CBS News, 7 June 2026
  • The biggest question may ultimately be whether Disney and ABC fight tooth and nail or make concessions to Carr.
    — ArsTechnica, 29 Apr. 2026
  • Real Madrid has fought the Miami match tooth and nail, accusing Tebas of chasing attention and destabilizing the league.
    — Asli Pelit, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
  • And Philadelphia is fighting tooth and nail to stay in the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference, because that’s the final one that guarantees a playoff berth.
    — Tony Jones, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2026
  • Margaret, having married an older man expecting guidance, is instead forced to build her family’s future from the ground up, only to fight tooth and nail to preserve it after her husband nearly destroys them.
    — Itzel Luna, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2025
  • In a separate bad-faith case that is still ongoing, the insurance department has fought tooth and nail to prevent an investigation of the state’s largest writer of homeowners insurance.
    — J.c. Hallman, Oklahoma Watch, 22 Jan. 2026
  • Worse still, since losing a four-point game to Edmonton that set in motion a shift from cruising atop the division to fighting tooth and nail for seeding, the Ducks’ game seems to be drifting farther away with each passing date.
    — Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 8 Apr. 2026
  • The Mail titles, though, have vigorously denied the allegations and look poised to fight the case tooth and nail, with a trial currently slated for early 2026.
    — Jack Royston, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Aug. 2025
  • The star of Lynne Ramsey's new film (which is looking like a strong contender in the 2026 Oscars race) has become a standard bearer for those who defend bangs tooth and nail.
    — Pamela Vázquez, Glamour, 11 Nov. 2025
  • And suffice to say, Girona will be desperately fighting tooth and nail to bag a result of its own, with the Catalans currently perched on the edge of the relegation zone ahead of hosting Real.
    — Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Nov. 2025
  • The decision marks a stark reversal for Alex Saab, who Maduro fought tooth and nail to bring home after his previous international arrest in 2020.
    — CBS News, 16 May 2026
  • In an entertainment landscape where studios are fighting tooth and nail for a rapidly diminishing slice of viewers’ attention, the rise of artificial intelligence represents a massive threat.
    — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 6 Aug. 2025
  • Jon ascends to the status of Lord Commander, uniting disparate forces against the White Walkers, while Sansa fights tooth and nail to become the tough Queen in the North.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Feb. 2026
  • During the 2021 season, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull's Max Verstappen fought tooth and nail at every race track.
    — Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Sep. 2025
  • The first option is politically fraught, providing an endorsement, however reluctant, of the Republicans’ go-it-alone budget strategy while ensuring a sharp backlash from a liberal base that wants to see Democrats fighting tooth and nail against the president.
    — Al Weaver, The Hill, 27 Sep. 2025
  • In the trailer for The Drama, a new movie from A24, Emma and Charlie (Zendaya and Robert Pattinson) meet with their wedding photographer, who’s fighting tooth and nail to try to get some chemistry between a couple about to get married.
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2025
  • The film is the true story of John Tuggle, the last pick in the 1983 NFL Draft by the New York Giants who fought tooth and nail to make the team, the first final draft pick to do so, and would go on to win Special Teams Player of the Year.
    — Brian Welk, IndieWire, 16 Apr. 2026

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

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