beard the lion in his den

verb

To confront an adversary in his or her own environment.

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Meanings

verbbeard the lion in his den (third-person singular simple present beards the lion in his den, present participle bearding the lion in his den, simple past and past participle bearded the lion in his den)

present singular third person beards the lion in his den · participle present bearding the lion in his den · participle past bearded the lion in his den · past bearded the lion in his den · alternative beard the lion

  1. idiomaticTo confront an adversary in his or her own environment.

    And dar'st thou then / To beard the lion in his den, / The Douglas in his hall?

    1808 February 22, Walter Scott, “Canto Sixth. The Battle.”, in Marmion; a Tale of Flodden Field, Edinburgh: […] J[ames] Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Company, […]; London: William Miller, and John Murray, →OCLC, stanza XIV, page 338
    2 more examples

    George and John Rennie, and James Ekron, a servant of my father’s, announced their determination to march in and beard the lion in his den, provided three of the Mulattoes, who were superior marksmen, would support them.

    1840, Thomas Pringle, Josiah Conder, Narrative of a residence in South Africa, page 45

    Duty called me to beard the lion in his den; and though no Daniel, I took on the job without fear and trembling…

    1936, The Bankers magazine, volume 132, page 307

Origin

From sense beard (“to confront”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

beard the lion in his den. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beard%20the%20lion%20in%20his%20den

MLA

“beard the lion in his den.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beard%20the%20lion%20in%20his%20den. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “beard the lion in his den,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beard%20the%20lion%20in%20his%20den.

Source: beard the lion in his den on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.