nail one's colours to the mast

English

Alternative forms

• ‎pin one's colours to the mast‎

Etymology

From the naval military practice of displaying one's colours (signal flags or insignia) from the mast of a ship during battle to show loyalty.

Verb

nail (one's) colours to the mast (third-person singular simple present nails one's colours to the mast, present participle nailing one's colours to the mast, simple past and past participle nailed one's colours to the mast)

1. To clearly show one's support for a side or opinion in a dispute.

Translations