a vida o muerte
Meaning: In a desperate, all-or-nothing struggle where the stakes are the highest possible.
Language: Spanish
Literally: at life or death
Category: Daily Life
Origin: The phrase draws directly on the image of a life-and-death confrontation, a fight where survival itself is at issue.
More idioms — Daily Life
- llevar la contraria — To argue against or contradict someone habitually.
- para andar por casa — Makeshift, temporary, or of poor quality; fit only for casual home use.
- salvar las apariencias — To maintain an outward show of respectability or normalcy despite underlying problems.
- a todo mecate — At full speed; with maximum effort; going all out.
- de un plumazo — suddenly or in a single swift action, as if accomplished with one stroke of a pen.
- ni a tiros — absolutely not; under no circumstances.
More Spanish idioms
- codo con codo — Standing shoulder to shoulder, side by side in close proximity.
- crecer como la espuma — To increase or expand very rapidly and dramatically.
- por la cara — Boldly and undeservedly; without earning it or paying for it; purely out of audacity or s…
- viva estampa — An exact likeness; someone or something that looks exactly like another.
- éramos pocos y parió la abuela — as if that wasn't enough, things went from bad to worse.
- mal trago — a difficult or unpleasant experience; a bitter pill to swallow.
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