Bar None

Meaning of Idiom ‘Bar None’

Bar none means without exception.

The idiom ‘bar none’ is generally used with a superlative such as best, worst, most, least, greatest, etc.

Sentence Examples

“My Uncle Henry was the meanest person I’ve ever known, bar none.”

“Baseball is bar none the best game ever invented.”

“Many people regard Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa to be the greatest painting of all time, bar none.”

“Last night was one of the worst nights of my entire life, bar none!” — Monsters, Inc. (2001)

“Charlie, here’s a nifty stat for you — for a guy that knows everything, to get a job in a call center you have to be, bar none, the biggest loser I have ever met in my life.” — Big Nothing (2006)

“Rachel’s the most talented person I’ve ever met, bar none.” — Glee: Nationals (2012)

“He’s childish and self-absorbed. He spent nearly every group session in total silence. He was, bar none, the least cooperative patient I’ve ever had.” — Elementary: One Way to Get Off (2012)

“Huh? I failed every test.” “With flying colors. You have got to be hands down, bar none, the worst candidate I’ve ever trained.” — Chuck: Chuck Versus the Role Models (2010)

Origin

Used since the mid-1800’s. ^{1 2}

Bar, in this expression, is used in the British way, as a preposition, to mean “except for or apart from” Hence, bar none means the same as excepting none or apart from none.

More Idioms Starting with B

• Be in Someone’s Hair
• Beat a Dead Horse
• Be a 10, to
• Buck For Something
• Bottomless Pit

More Bar Idioms

• Raise the Bar
• Behind Bars
• No Holds Barred
• Katie Bar the Door

More None Idioms

• Using ‘None Too’ In a Sentence
• None the Wiser Meaning

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References

1. Brenner, Gail Abel. Webster’s New World American Idioms Handbook. Wiley, 2003.
2. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.