arm2

[ahrm] /ɑrm/
noun
1.
Usually, arms. weapons, especially firearms.
2.
arms, Heraldry. the escutcheon, with its divisions, charges, and tinctures, and the other components forming an achievement that symbolizes and is reserved for a person, family, or corporate body; armorial bearings; coat of arms.
verb (used without object)
3.
to enter into a state of hostility or of readiness for war.
verb (used with object)
4.
to equip with weapons:
to arm the troops.
5.
to activate (a fuze) so that it will explode the charge at the time desired.
6.
to cover protectively.
7.
to provide with whatever will add strength, force, or security; support; fortify:
He was armed with statistics and facts.
8.
to equip or prepare for any specific purpose or effective use:
to arm a security system; to arm oneself with persuasive arguments.
9.
to prepare for action; make fit; ready.
Idioms
10.
bear arms,
  1. to carry weapons.
  2. to serve as a member of the military or of contending forces:
    His religious convictions kept him from bearing arms, but he served as an ambulance driver with the Red Cross.
11.
take up arms, to prepare for war; go to war:
to take up arms against the enemy.
12.
under arms, ready for battle; trained and equipped:
The number of men under arms is no longer the decisive factor in warfare.
13.
up in arms, ready to take action; indignant; outraged:
There is no need to get up in arms over such a trifle.
Origin
1200-50 for v.; 1300-50 for noun; (v.) Middle English armen < Anglo-French, Old French armer < Latin armāre to arm, verbal derivative of arma (plural) tools, weapons (not akin to arm1); (noun) Middle English armes (plural) ≪ Latin arma, as above
Related forms
armless, adjective
Synonyms
8. outfit.
Antonyms
5. deactivate, disarm.
British Dictionary definitions for take up arms

arm1

/ɑːm/
noun
1.
(in man) either of the upper limbs from the shoulder to the wrist related adjective brachial
2.
the part of either of the upper limbs from the elbow to the wrist; forearm
3.
  1. the corresponding limb of any other vertebrate
  2. an armlike appendage of some invertebrates
4.
an object that covers or supports the human arm, esp the sleeve of a garment or the side of a chair, sofa, etc
5.
anything considered to resemble an arm in appearance, position, or function, esp something that branches out from a central support or larger mass: an arm of the sea, the arm of a record player
6.
an administrative subdivision of an organization: an arm of the government
7.
power; authority: the arm of the law
8.
any of the specialist combatant sections of a military force, such as cavalry, infantry, etc
9.
(nautical) See yardarm
10.
(sport) especially (ball games) ability to throw or pitch: he has a good arm
11.
(informal) an arm and a leg, a large amount of money
12.
arm in arm, with arms linked
13.
at arm's length, at a distance; away from familiarity with or subjection to another
14.
(informal) give one's right arm, to be prepared to make any sacrifice
15.
in the arms of Morpheus, sleeping
16.
with open arms, with great warmth and hospitality: to welcome someone with open arms
verb
17.
(transitive) (archaic) to walk arm in arm with
Derived Forms
armless, adjective
armlike, adjective
Word Origin
Old English; related to German Arm, Old Norse armr arm, Latin armus shoulder, Greek harmos joint

arm2

/ɑːm/
verb (transitive)
1.
to equip with weapons as a preparation for war
2.
to provide (a person or thing) with something that strengthens, protects, or increases efficiency: he armed himself against the cold
3.
  1. to activate (a fuse) so that it will explode at the required time
  2. to prepare (an explosive device) for use by introducing a fuse or detonator
4.
(nautical) to pack arming into (a sounding lead)
noun
5.
(usually pl) a weapon, esp a firearm
See also arms
Word Origin
C14: (n) back formation from arms, from Old French armes, from Latin arma; (vb) from Old French armer to equip with arms, from Latin armāre, from arma arms, equipment

ARM

abbreviation
1.
adjustable rate mortgage
Word Origin and History for take up arms

arm

n.

"upper limb," Old English earm "arm," from Proto-Germanic *armaz (cf. Old Saxon, Danish, Swedish, Middle Dutch, German arm, Old Norse armr, Old Frisian erm), from PIE root *ar- "fit, join" (cf. Sanskrit irmah "arm," Armenian armukn "elbow," Old Prussian irmo "arm," Greek arthron "a joint," Latin armus "shoulder"). Arm of the sea was in Old English. Arm-twister "powerful persuader" is from 1938. Arm-wrestling is from 1899.

They wenten arme in arme yfere Into the gardyn [Chaucer]

"weapon," c.1300, armes (plural) "weapons of a warrior," from Old French armes (plural), "arms, war, warfare," mid-13c., from Latin arma "weapons" (including armor), literally "tools, implements (of war)," from PIE root *ar- "fit, join" (see arm (n.1)). The notion seems to be "that which is fitted together." Meaning "heraldic insignia" (in coat of arms, etc.) is early 14c.; originally they were borne on shields of fully armed knights or barons.

v.

"to furnish with weapons," c.1200, from Old French armer or directly from Latin armare, from arma (see arm (n.2)). Related: Armed; arming.

take up arms in Medicine

arm 1 (ärm)
n.
An upper limb of the human body, connecting the hand and wrist to the shoulder.

Slang definitions & phrases for take up arms

arm

noun

A police officer

verb

highflag (Cabdrivers)

Related Terms

as long as your arm, crooked arm, one-arm bandit, ride the arm, stiff, twist someone's arm

[police sense fr arm of the law]


Related Abbreviations for take up arms

ARM

  1. adjustable rate mortgage
  2. Alien Resistance Movement
  3. antiradiation missile
  4. Armenia (international vehicle ID)
take up arms in the Bible

used to denote power (Ps. 10:15; Ezek. 30:21; Jer. 48:25). It is also used of the omnipotence of God (Ex. 15:16; Ps. 89:13; 98:1; 77:15; Isa. 53:1; John 12:38; Acts 13:17)

Idioms and Phrases with take up arms

take up arms

Also, take up the cudgels. Become involved in a conflict, either physical or verbal, as in The Kurds took up arms against the Iranians at least two centuries ago, or Some believe it's the vice-president's job to take up the cudgels for the president. The first term originated in the 1400s in the sense of going to war. The variant, alluding to cudgels as weapons, has been used figuratively since the mid-1600s and is probably obsolescent.

arm

also see: