in the face of
Related to in the face of: fly the nest
in the face of (something)
1. In spite of; notwithstanding. Some people still believe vaccinations to be harmful in the face of thousands of scientific studies proving otherwise. In the face of the boss's disapproval, we decided to go forward with the project anyway.
2. When threatened by or confronted with. It's hard to be an optimist in the face of so much tragedy and turmoil in the news each day.
See also: face, of
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
in the face of
1. Despite the opposition of, notwithstanding, as in In the face of published statistics, they insist there is no flu epidemic. [Early 1800s] Also see fly in the face of.
2. When confronted with, as in It is hard for brokers to be cheerful in the face of a falling stock market. [Late 1800s]
See also: face, of
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
- in the face of (something)
- in the face of something
- in the teeth of
- in the teeth of (something)
- in the teeth of danger, opposition, etc.
- for all that
- dodge
- dodge a bullet
- do (someone) a bad turn
- have too much of a good thing