take no prisoners

verb

To be uncompromising.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbtake no prisoners (third-person singular simple present takes no prisoners, present participle taking no prisoners, simple past took no prisoners, past participle taken no prisoners)

present singular third person takes no prisoners · participle present taking no prisoners · past took no prisoners · participle past taken no prisoners

  1. idiomaticTo be uncompromising.

    It’s a rare thing to see a movie about science that takes no prisoners intellectually.

    2015 January 21, “Ex Machina: Quest to create an AI takes no prisoners”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), New Scientist
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see take, prisoner.

Origin

Implying that one kills all one's enemies instead of capturing them.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French ne pas faire de prisonniers, ne pas faire de cadeaux
  • ne pas faire de prisonniersto be uncompromising
  • ne pas faire de cadeauxto be uncompromising
German keine Gefangenen machen
  • keine Gefangenen machento be uncompromising
Hungarian nem ismer irgalmat
  • nem ismer irgalmatto be uncompromising
Polish nie brać jeńców
  • nie brać jeńcówto be uncompromising
Cite this entry
APA

take no prisoners. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20no%20prisoners

MLA

“take no prisoners.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20no%20prisoners. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “take no prisoners,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20no%20prisoners.

Source: take no prisoners on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.