have a bone to pick

have a bone to pick

English

Pronunciation

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Verb

have a bone to pick (third-person singular simple present has a bone to pick, present participle having a bone to pick, simple past and past participle had a bone to pick)

1. (idiomatic, usually followed by with) To have a complaint or grievance (with somebody); to have a contentious issue to discuss.
   • c. 1900, Anna Katharine Green, "The Ruby and the Cauldron":

     "I offered her that sum if she would take the garment back. And she did, she did, and I shall never have to wear that dreadful satin again." ¶ I made a note of this dressmaker's name. She and I may have a bone to pick some day.

   • 1912, Arthur Quiller-Couch, chapter 18, in Hocken and Hunken:

     "I have a bone to pick with you," said Mrs Bosenna. . . . "You have not been near Rilla for weeks," she went on, reproachfully.

   • 1992 Sept. 6, Merryl R. Goldberg, "Letters: Jazz," New York Times (retrieved 11 July 2011):

     Clearly, Mr. Jarrett has a bone to pick with musicians like Branford Marsalis, whom he believes "sell out".

   • 2004 July 18, Smita Madhur and Barbara Kiviat, "World Briefing," Time:

     Author John Putzier has a bone to pick with organizations that treat their employees as if they were all clones of one another.

Translations

have a complaint or grievance

Chinese: Mandarin: 有不滿／有不满 (yǒu bùmǎn), 有意見／有意见 (yǒu yìjiàn) Dutch: een appeltje te schillen hebben (met) Finnish: olla kana kynittävänä French: avoir une dent contre quelqu'un (fr) German: ein Hühnchen zu rupfen haben Norwegian: ha en høne å plukke med noen Russian: иметь претензию (imetʹ pretenziju) Spanish: tener que arreglar las cuentas con alguien Swedish: ha en gås oplockad (sv)

See also

• have a crow to pull
• have an axe to grind