have the guts (to do something)

have the guts (to do something)

To have enough courage, conviction, or resolve (to do something). You're always talking about quitting your job, but I don't think you have the guts. I know it can be difficult, but you've got to have the guts to stand up for your beliefs!See also: gut, have

have the guts

Possess the courage, as in Does he have the guts to dive off the high board? This expression replaces the earlier and now obsolete sense of stomach as "courage," a usage from the early 1500s. [Slang; late 1800s] See also: gut, have

have the ˈguts (to do something)

(informal) have the courage (to do something): She didn’t have the guts to tell him she was going to move out. ♢ He’ll never agree to sail across the Atlantic with you. He hasn’t got the guts. ▶ ˈgutsy adj.: a gutsy fighterSee also: gut, have