Word.ws English Dictionary

gives someone the arm

gives someone the arm is the third-person singular simple present indicative of give someone the arm.

Meaning of give someone the arm

Verb

give someone the arm (third-person singular simple present gives someone the arm, present participle giving someone the arm, simple past gave someone the arm, past participle given someone the arm)

  1. (US, informal) To direct the bras d'honneur (obscene gesture) at someone.
    • Pentangeli walks out of the restaurant; there's a little tension between the bodyguards of the two factions.
      ROSATO (O.S.) Hey, Five-Angels...
      He gives him the arm.
      Frankie's face turns red, like he wants to have it out here and now; but Willy Cicci calms his down, and they all make their move out.1973, Mario Puzo, Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather Part II (screenplay, second draft)

Questions about gives someone the arm

What is gives someone the arm the third-person singular simple present indicative of?
Gives someone the arm is the third-person singular simple present indicative of give someone the arm.

Words near gives someone the arm in the dictionary

  1. gives someone Jessie
  2. gives someone line
  3. gives someone one
  4. gives someone something to think about
  5. gives someone the air
  6. gives someone the arm
  7. gives someone the bag
  8. gives someone the boot
  9. gives someone the brush-off
  10. gives someone the business
  11. gives someone the chair

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: gives someone the arm (page history and authors); give someone the arm (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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