arms race

Register · Neutral Neutral — appropriate in most situations, both spoken and written, without sounding too casual or too stiff. CEFR C1

Post

Figurative meaning

a competitive spiral in which rivals keep escalating their investment to stay ahead

Why this phrase?

From the Cold War nuclear buildup: each side escalates because the other did.

Example

“The AI labs are in an arms race for reasoning benchmarks.”

Dictionary details

Component words

arms race

Tags

Expressions connected by reviewed component words or topic tags.

race to the bottom Neutral · CEFR C1

a competitive spiral that drives prices, quality, or standards lower and lower

rat race Informal · CEFR B1

the exhausting, competitive struggle to keep up at work and get ahead

with open arms Neutral · CEFR B1

with an enthusiastic and affectionate welcome

get out of hand Neutral · CEFR B1

To become impossible to control.

give someone a run for their money Neutral · CEFR B1

to compete nearly as well as a much stronger opponent, forcing them to work hard for victory

add fuel to the fire Neutral · CEFR B2

To make a bad situation or an argument worse.

Source methodology

Meanings, register, CEFR, and examples come from the reviewed dictionary record. Expression notes may describe a reviewed present-day word picture or a background note; they are not presented as verified etymology.

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