bare one's teeth

Meaning: To show hostility and a readiness to fight.

Language: English

Literally: (Already vivid in English)

Example: “When the competitor tried to poach its clients, the small firm bared its teeth.”

Category: Animals

Origin: Taken from animal behavior: a dog or wolf draws back its lips and shows its teeth as a warning before it attacks.

Equivalents in other languages

have a memory like an elephant — To remember things, especially slights, for a very long time.
something fishy is going on — Something suspicious is happening.
be full of beans — To be lively and full of energy.
work oneself into a lather — To become very agitated, anxious or angry.
like a bear with a sore head — In a very bad, irritable mood.
prick up one's ears — To suddenly start listening closely.

one's eyes are bigger than one's stomach — To take more food than one can eat; more broadly, to want more than one can handle.
have a sharp tongue — To speak in a harsh, cutting way.
be in the thick of it — To be in the busiest or most intense part of an activity.
cut one's teeth — To gain one's first experience of something.
be scared stiff — To be so frightened that one cannot move.
have stars in one's eyes — To be dazzled or dreamily idealistic, especially about love or fame.

Fredagsmys — The Friday-night ritual of soft clothes, snacks and television with the people you live w…
Gökotta — Rising at first light for no reason but to go outside and hear the birds sing.
Poshlost' — Not merely the trashy, but the falsely important, falsely beautiful and falsely clever —…