down and dirty

down and dirty

1. Vicious or ruthless. Once this campaign gets down and dirty, be prepared for the opposition to start verbally attacking your family members.
2. Uninhibited, especially sexually. Are you really surprised that he cheated on you? He gets down and dirty with every girl that comes in this place!
See also: and, dirty, down
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

down and dirty

 
1. crude and carelessly done. (Used as an attributive.) The last time he painted the kitchen, it was a down and dirty job because he thought we were moving. Fig. coarse; mean-spirited. The campaign for governor really got down and dirty in the final week.
See also: and, dirty, down
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

down and dirty

1. Vicious, not governed by rules of decency, as in The candidates are getting down and dirty early in the campaign. [Slang; early 1980s]
2. Very earthy, uninhibitedly sexual. For example, "L.A. club people rarely get down and dirty on a dance floor" ( The New Yorker, May 21, 1990). [Late 1980s]
See also: and, dirty, down
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

down and dirty

mainly AMERICAN
1. If you describe a person or their behaviour as down and dirty, you mean that they behave in an unpleasant or dishonest way. If the President gets down and dirty, the Governor will give as good as he gets. Did this campaign get down and dirty?
2. Something that is down and dirty is shocking and direct but often enjoyable. Get down and dirty with Sandra Bernhard who comes to Britain with her one-woman show, Giving Till It Hurts. Adam and his dad turned me onto the real down-and-dirty stuff like Otis Clay, William Bell and Albert King.
See also: and, dirty, down
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

down and dirty

1 unprincipled; unpleasant. 2 energetically earthy, direct, or sexually explicit. North American informal
See also: and, dirty, down
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

down and dirty

Unfair, vicious; also, coarse, explicit about unpleasant matters. The first usage of this colloquialism dates from the mid-1900s, as in “The neighbors were furious about the new ordinance and waged a real down and dirty fight.” The second surfaced a decade or two later, as in the film entitled Down and Dirty (1976), a black comedy about a depraved family whose interests include adultery, murder, revenge, and incest.
See also: and, dirty, down
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • circle
  • be at daggers drawn
  • queer bashing
  • at daggers drawn
  • dagger
  • daggers drawn, at
  • lose (one's) patience (with someone)
  • lose patience
References in periodicals archive
Down and Dirty speaks to rural teens' culture and a lifestyle embodied by outdoor activities, such as hunting and off-roading.
It held focus groups with rural teens and what eventually emerged was the Down and Dirty brand, which launched in April.
It includes two television ads that have been broadcast so far, with a third in production, as well as a Down and Dirty Facebook page--www.facebook.com/downnand dirtylife--and sponsored events.
In September, for example, Down and Dirty sponsored prizes in the Vermonster 4x4, an off-roading event featuring monster trucks.
The Down and Dirty Life page has more than 1,600 likes, which it has accrued in just five months since it launched.
Anti-smoking campaign in Vermont targets rural teens who love outdoors
Pristine and clean or down and dirty? Down and Dirty.
WATERFORD LASS UP FOR PULP.. AND A LITTLE SUN
ALEXANDRA BURKE plans on getting "down and dirty" with her next record.
"We're just getting down and dirty with the next album.
Alex has the sex factor
ARE YOU IN FAVOUR OF DOWN AND DIRTY OR PRISTINE AND CLEAN?
I don't think it really bothers me, with the weather here irish festivals are always gonna be a down and dirty affair, and sure when you wake up on Monday morning in a bundle you can always look forward to getting back to your pristine and clean home.
MAL TUOHY THE TIPTIDE MOVEMENT [...]; A QUICK ONE WITH
Following the success of last month's rammed session, here's another chance to get deep down and Dirty. Next Saturday (October 13), Dirty duo Wayne O'Connell and Gary Ingram unleash another top bash for the elite partygoers.
music & clubs: Dirty dancing