at sixes and sevens

English

Etymology

Unknown, though it may have originated from the game of hazard and the Old French cinc (“five”) and sis (“six”), the riskiest numbers to shoot for, which were misheard and folk-etymologized into English as "six" and "seven".

Pronunciation

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Prepositional phrase

at sixes and sevens

1. (idiomatic) In a state of confusion.

   Synonym: all sixes and nines

   • 1912, Arthur Quiller-Couch, chapter 23, in Poison Island:

     Oh, what a racket! And everything on deck apparently at sixes and sevens. Mail-bags and passengers mixed up in every direction.

2. (idiomatic, of people or groups) In a state of dispute or disagreement.

   Synonym: at loggerheads

   • 1911, Jack London, chapter 6, in Adventure:

     Her outlook on life was so different from what he conceived a woman's outlook should be, that he was more often than not at sixes and sevens with her.

   • 1976, Tim Rice, Don't Cry For Me Argentina:

     All you will see is a girl you once knew, although she's dressed up to the nines, at sixes and sevens with you.

Translations

References

• “at sixes and sevens”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• Michael Quinion (2004) “At sixes and sevens”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.