if it had teeth, it'd bite one

phrase

It is in plain sight; one should be able to see it for oneself.

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Meanings

phrase
  1. UScolloquialhumorousIt is in plain sight; one should be able to see it for oneself.

    ALICE. Where's the sugar, Mother? JENNIE. Right under your nose. If it had teeth, it'd bite you.

    1942, Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich, Western Union, Please: A Comedy in Three Acts, page 5
    2 more examples

    Maybe there was a gross flaw, so obvious that they were all missing it, just as Mario sometimes said, "Where's the dried oregano?" when the jar was in plain view on the countertop. Then Dora would say, "If it had teeth, it'd bite you."

    1994, Lawrence Sanders, Three Complete Novels, page 354

    LETTY (Quite suddenly younger, timid.) Ma says to pass the salt, Pa. CAP (Deep voiced, strong, harsh.) You can tell her it's over there. LETTY She says where, Pa? CAP If it had teeth, it'd bite her.

    2008, Barbara Parisi, The Best American Short Plays, 2004-2005, page 270
Cite this entry
APA

if it had teeth, it'd bite one. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/if%20it%20had%20teeth%2C%20it'd%20bite%20one

MLA

“if it had teeth, it'd bite one.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/if%20it%20had%20teeth%2C%20it'd%20bite%20one. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “if it had teeth, it'd bite one,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/if%20it%20had%20teeth%2C%20it'd%20bite%20one.

Source: if it had teeth, it'd bite one on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.