pound of flesh
Something which is owed and which will be hurtful or difficult to provide; a debt owed to someone who is merciless and demanding.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The bank demands its pound of flesh even when you are struggling.”
“The landlord insisted on his pound of flesh, refusing to lower the rent despite the building's poor condition.”
“By enforcing the contract to the letter, the ruthless investor exacted his pound of flesh from the struggling startup founders.”
From Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, in which Antonio literally owes a pound of his flesh to the moneylender Shylock.
- 01
a pound to a penny
Very likely; almost certainly.
- 02
an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure
Precaution and prevention of an undesirable thing is preferable to dealing with its potential consequences.
- 03
become one flesh
To join together in marriage; to develop a unifying bond as a result of marrying.
- 04
exchange flesh
To engage in sexual intercourse.
- 05
flesh one's maiden sword
To experience or succeed in combat or struggle for the first time, as in the military or in politics.
- 06
flesh out
To complete; to create details from a basic outline, structure, or skeleton.
- 07
merry-go-round
[Cockney slang]pound
- 08
neither fish, flesh, nor good red herring
Synonym of neither fish nor fowl (“not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; also, not having the advantages of the various options”).
Last updated August 10, 2026