put one's foot down

put one's foot down idiom
Take a firm stand, as in She put her foot down and said we could not go to the carnival. This idiom alludes to setting down one's foot firmly, representing a firm position. [Late 1800s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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