bad to the bone

bad to the bone

Thoroughly and completely immoral, wicked, dangerous, or unlawful. Often used in an ironic, jocular way. Don't mess with me, I'm bad to the bone! I bet he thinks he's bad to the bone, riding around on that motorcycle.
See also: bad, bone
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
See also:
  • Evel Knievel
  • shady deal
  • suspicious
  • shady character
  • whoop
  • suspicious character
  • silver goose
  • circular
References in periodicals archive
Pupcakes BAD TO THE BONE CHEESE STRAWS 8 ounces sharp cheese, softened and grated 1/2 cup butter, softened 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Doggone good time: make no bones about it--this pet party was pure tail-wagging fun
At one of her shows she chose the song 'Bad to the Bone' to dance to.
Comedian battles past abuse with laughter. (People)
This knife is bad to the bone, and I mean that in a good way.
Masters of Defense CQD Mark V ATAC. (Shooter's Box)
Muzzy[R] Products recently released, "Bad to the Bone" Bucks -- Volume I, a 90-minute hunting video that lays claim to "the largest bow-killed whitetail buck ever taken on camera." Brian Mosher's 198 1/8-inch buck from Pike County, Illinois, dominates the final segment of the video.
Muzzy[R] shoots big bucks. (What's New)
In the epilogue, which is Wurtzel's attempt to convince the reader that she's too dang bad to the bone to ever get married and settle down, we get a simultaneously outrageous and utterly mundane recitation of everything she was too busy doing in her twenties to bother finding a husband.
Bitch: In Praise of Difficult Women
They are big, brilliant, bad to the bone, and thoroughly dominating.
Just another way to say Big Mac
With her new novel, The Robber Bride, Margaret Atwood takes a wild romp on this theme, mixing equal parts farce and melodrama to concoct Zenia--evil incarnate, bad to the bone, an old-fashioned villainess for modern times.
The Robber Bride
"I loved when some of our former football players sitting with former Sesser-Valier players requested "Bad to the Bone."
Babington fundraiser draws over 800 guests Fundraiser
Little surprise, then, that Chris Robertson & Co broke into Led Zeppelin's Whole Lotta Love midway through a suitably sweaty set that also boasted covers of George Thorogood's Bad To The Bone and Willie Dixon's Built For Comfort.
US rockers show Whole Lotta Love for home of hard rock
It seems this little chihuahua is bad to the bone and ready to rule the highway.
Bad to the bone - dog dons his helmet and goggles for ride
BAD TO THE BONE Charlie Sheen has had his problems with booze and drugs
He's a right Charlie; Life & crimes of notorious Hollywood hellraiser Sheen
He loved the 1980s classic "Bad to the Bone" by George Thorogood and the Destroyers, and the newer hit "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gotye.
A boy's life remembered
27 will feature the delicious barbecue flavors of Bad to the Bone BBQ and country and western music from a local artist.
San Juan Capistrano's Most Anticipated Community, Campanilla at San Juan Hills, Debuts to California Home Buyers Oct. 27
Featuring a 1 3/16-inch cutting diameter and Muzzy's "Bad to the Bone" Trocar Tip, the result is a wicked wound channel that should easily bring down the biggest of spring bears.
Spring bear-hunting essentials
His novel Bad To The Bone, a surreal comedy based on the toughest sporting event of them all, the Tour De France, received international coverage and admiring reviews.
James is a man of many words and writing styles; Holme Valley-based writer James Waddington's latest literary venture is a labour love - as well as writing and editing it he also designed the cover for the book, and set every last letter, comma and full stop of the type himself. He told VAL JAVIN about the pains and pleasures of writing