bang to rights

== English == === Alternative forms === banged to rights === Pronunciation === === Etymology 1 === From bang (“completely”) +‎ to rights (“properly”). Originally US; attested from the start of the 20th century. ==== Adverb ==== bang to rights (not generally comparable, comparative more bang to rights, superlative most bang to rights) (now chiefly British, idiomatic) Red-handed, (caught) in the act. Synonyms: dead to rights; see also Thesaurus:guiltily Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see bang (adverb), to rights. === Etymology 2 === From reinterpretation of bang (“completely”) as bang (“to handle noisily or violently”). ==== Verb ==== bang to rights (third-person singular simple present bangs to rights, present participle banging to rights, simple past and past participle banged to rights) (rare, British, idiomatic) To have sufficient, indisputable evidence that a person's actions are generally perceived to be wrong; to catch red-handed. === See also === fair cop === References ===