face to face
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
In the immediate presence of each other; two or more persons facing each other.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Examples
Please stand face to face.Hãy đứng mặt đối mặt.
Please stand face to face.Hãy đứng mặt đối mặt.
Tatoeba sentence #240590 (CC BY 2.0 FR, tatoeba.org, retrieved 2026-07-31)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “face to face” mean?
In the immediate presence of each other; two or more persons facing each other.
Is “face to face” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.