fight fire with fire

fight fire with fire
An injunction to counter like with like. Cf. early 14th-cent. Fr. lung feu doit estaindre lautre, one fire must put out another; 1608 SHAKESPEARE Coriolanus IV. vii. 54 One fire drives out one fire; one nail, one nail.

1846 J. F. COOPER Redskins III. i. If ‘Fire will fight fire’, ‘Indian’ ought to be a match for ‘Injin’ any day.

1869 P. T. BARNUM Struggles & Triumphs xl. I write to ask what your intentions are... Do you intend to fight fire with fire?

1980 C. SMITH Cut-out ix. ‘You think the other Palestinians have hired some heavies as well?’ ‘Why not? Fight fire with fire.’


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  • Fight Fire With Fire — Chanson par Metallica extrait de l’album Ride the Lightning Sortie 1984 Enregistrement 1984 au Sweet Silence Studios de Copenhagen, Danemark Durée 4:45 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Fight fire with fire — Chanson par Metallica extrait de l’album Ride the Lightning Sortie 1984 Enregistrement 1984 au Sweet Silence Studios de Copenhagen, Danemark Durée 4:45 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Fight Fire with Fire — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda «Fight Fire with Fire» Canción de Metallica Álbum Ride the Lightning Publicación 1984 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Fight Fire with Fire — Chanson par Metallica extrait de l’album Ride the Lightning Sortie 1984 Enregistrement 1984 au Sweet Silence Studios de Copenhague, Danemark Durée 4:45 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • fight fire with fire — {v. phr.}, {slightly formal}, {of Biblical origin} To fight back in the same way one was attacked; make a defense similar to the attack. * /The candidate was determined to fight fire with fire in the debate./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • fight fire with fire — {v. phr.}, {slightly formal}, {of Biblical origin} To fight back in the same way one was attacked; make a defense similar to the attack. * /The candidate was determined to fight fire with fire in the debate./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • Fight Fire with Fire — Metallica Metallica live in London, 2003. Von links nach rechts: Robert Trujillo, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield. Gründung Oktober 1981 Genre …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • fight fire with fire — verb To respond to an attack with a similar or identical method …   Wiktionary

  • fire — firer, n. /fuyeur/, n., v., fired, firing. n. 1. a state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame. 2. a burning mass of material, as on a hearth or… …   Universalium

  • fire — See: BALL OF FIRE, BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA or BETWEEN TWO FIRES, BUILD A FIRE UNDER, BURNT CHILD DREADS THE FIRE, CATCH FIRE, DRAW FIRE, FAT S IN THE FIRE, FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE, HANG FIRE, HEAP COALS OF FIRE ON ONE S HEAD, HOLD… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • fire — See: BALL OF FIRE, BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA or BETWEEN TWO FIRES, BUILD A FIRE UNDER, BURNT CHILD DREADS THE FIRE, CATCH FIRE, DRAW FIRE, FAT S IN THE FIRE, FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE, HANG FIRE, HEAP COALS OF FIRE ON ONE S HEAD, HOLD… …   Dictionary of American idioms

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