gnash one's teeth

gnash (one's) teeth

To erupt or lash out in anger. The boss will definitely start gnashing his teeth once he hears about this printing mishap.
See also: gnash, teeth
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

gnash one's teeth

Fig. to grind or bite noisily with one's teeth. Bill clenched his fists and gnashed his teeth in anger. The wolf gnashed its teeth and chased after the deer.
See also: gnash, teeth
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

gnash one's teeth

Express a strong emotion, usually rage, as in When Jonah found out he was not going to be promoted, he gnashed his teeth. This expression is actually redundant, since gnash means "to strike the teeth together." Edmund Spenser used it in The Faerie Queene (1590): "And both did gnash their teeth." [Late 1500s]
See also: gnash, teeth
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

gnash one's teeth, to

To express one’s anger or frustration. This term, dating from the late sixteenth century, is redundant, since to gnash means “to strike the teeth together.” Today the verb is practically always figurative (no one actually strikes the teeth together) and is never heard except in this cliché. The King James Bible of 1611 has it: “But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12).
See also: gnash
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • gnash
  • gnash (one's) teeth
  • gnash teeth
  • gnash your teeth
  • hell's teeth
  • grit one's teeth, to
  • drop (one's) teeth
  • drop one’s teeth
  • drop teeth
  • grit teeth
References in classic literature
to be peeped at like a wild lion through the iron bars--to gnash one's teeth and howl, through the long still night, to the merry ring of a heavy chain and to roll and twine among the straw, transported with such brave music.
The Posthumous Papers Of The Pickwick Club