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bone to pick

/ˈboʊn tə ˌpɪk/
IPA guide

Other forms: bones to pick

Someone who has a bone to pick with you is upset about something you did, or wants to argue about something. If you skip school, and your parents dislike your music, they'll have two bones to pick with you.

A dog with a big meaty bone will keep gnawing or chewing on it until it has picked every scrap of meat off it. Sometimes the dog will even break the bare bone to pieces with its teeth. He just won't let it go! This is like someone who wants to keep arguing about something, or keep going over some upsetting incident, until they're sure they've made their point and won you over. Beware of anybody who comes up to you and says, "I've got a bone to pick with you!"

Definitions of bone to pick
  1. idiom
    a grudge or complaint against someone, or a point on which there is a disagreement with them
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