To bite the bullet is a verb phrase that means “to do something painful or accept a painful experience, in order to get the benefit.” For example:
Last year, I finally bit the bullet and decided to return to school.
You should just bite the bullet and buy a bigger house.
The idea of this phrase comes from a tradition of war. Often during wars, soldiers are hurt so badly that they require immediate treatment, not waiting to reach a hospital. During fighting, that treatment can be terribly painful, such as cutting off a damaged leg, without anesthetic. In such cases, a soldier would bite something, such as a bullet, or a leather strap, in order to cope with the pain.
So, biting the bullet means “choosing to undergo a painful but beneficial or necessary experience.”
More Examples of “Bite the Bullet” Used in a Sentence
- Someone’s got to bite the bullet; I guess it’s gonna be me.
- We should bite the bullet and buy a new car.
- Cameron must bite the bullet here and go with honour, but go he must.
- You may want to just bite the bullet and delete your Twitter history entirely.
- Johnson must also decide soon whether to bite the bullet on social care.