bare-knuckled

1. participlepastsimple past and past participle of bare-knuckle

comparative more bare-knuckled · superlative most bare-knuckled

1. Synonym of bare-knuckle.
   1. Without boxing gloves

      Well, it's hard to knock a tough man cold with bare-knuckled head punches.

      2004, Robert E. Howard, Paul Herman, Waterfront Fists and Others, →ISBN

      2 more examples

      Frank Slavin, who fought both bare-knuckled and gloved bouts, was the heavyweight champion of Australia and boxed in the United States, Canada and England.

      2000, Murray Phillips, From Sidelines to Centre Field, →ISBN

      However, Dean was hardly a nature lover, so his attention immediately went to eight men in the backyard, who were training in bare-knuckled fist fighting—three white men and five colored men.

      2012, Gregory Dupree, Harlem Street Fighter, →ISBN, page 3

   2. Ruthlessly competitive

      Nevertheless, merger arbitrage is not wholly lacking in bare-knuckled elements.

      2010, John B. Abbink, Alternative Assets and Strategic Allocation, →ISBN, page 141

      2 more examples

      His return – armed with a set peppered with Clash classics such as 'London Calling' and 'White Man In Hammersmith Palais' – had the old bare-knuckled punks from 1977 literally in tears.

      1999, Sue Welfare, Off the Record, →ISBN, page 279

      Recent electoral battles in the city had been closely contested, bare-knuckled affairs, each party routinely accusing the other of cheating.

      2007, Patrick G. Williams, Red River Valley: Beyond Redemption, →ISBN