tug of war
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
A rural sport in which a number of men, divided into two bands, lay hold of a strong rope and pull against each other till one side has tugged the other over the dividing line.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
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 “tug of war” mean?
A rural sport in which a number of men, divided into two bands, lay hold of a strong rope and pull against each other till one side has tugged the other over the dividing line.
Is “tug of war” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.