big stick

a policy of acting or negotiating from a position backed by a show of strength

Origin: from “speak softly and carry a big stick,” portion of Afr proverb quoted by T. Theodore Roosevelt

See big stick in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun
A display or threat, especially of military force: a foreign policy that relied on the big stick.

Related Forms:

  • bigˈstickˈ (bĭgˈstĭkˈ) adjective

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