Definition

1. Adverb:
   • Involving direct personal contact or confrontation: Used to describe a situation where two or more people are directly opposite or in the presence of each other, often for communication or confrontation.
   • Directly confronting a person or situation: Used to indicate dealing with someone or something directly, without intermediaries or avoidance.

Usage Examples

• Adverb:
  • The two leaders finally met face to face to negotiate the treaty.
  • It's easier to resolve misunderstandings when you talk face to face.
  • After years of correspondence, they met face to face for the first time.

Advanced Usage

• "come face to face with (someone/something)": To encounter someone or something directly, often unexpectedly or in a confrontational manner.
  • Walking through the forest, I came face to face with a deer.
  • The investigation forced him to come face to face with his past mistakes.

Variants and Related Words

• Face-to-face (Adjective): Used before a noun to describe a type of direct interaction.
  • We scheduled a face-to-face meeting for next week.
  • The course offers both online and face-to-face instruction.

Synonyms

• In person: Being physically present.
• Directly: Without any intermediary.
• Personally: In a private or individual capacity.

Related Phrases

• Eye to eye: In agreement (often used in the negative: "do not see eye to eye").
• One-on-one: Involving direct interaction between two individuals.

Related Idioms

• Confront head-on: To deal with a problem or person directly and without hesitation.
  • You need to confront this issue head-on instead of avoiding it.

Adverb

1. involving close contact; confronting each other
   • the boy and the policeman suddenly came face-to-face at the corner
   • they spoke face to face