hold no brief for

Idioms and Phrases

Refuse to support, dislike, as in I hold no brief for liars . This term is a negative version of the legal expression hold a brief for , meaning “to support or defend a position by argument.” The noun brief has been used in this way since the 1200s.

Example Sentences

Let me say that I hold no brief for President Trump.

From Washington Post

Which is fair enough: The Space Wasps were real sticklers for colony hierarchy, their plan for renovating planets that joined the Interstellar Space Wasp Empire boiled down to “asbestos, and lots of it,” the constant, tinnitus-inducing high-pitched screaming sound their gills made at all times could get on one’s nerves, and as a Catholic I hold no brief for Interstellar Space Wasp theology.

From Slate

I hold no brief for Kim Kardashian, nor for the people who sustain her by consuming the media in which she so lucratively appears.

From The Guardian

I hold no brief for “Chariots of Fire,” but if your hero comes to Cambridge, feels half snubbed as an outsider, and exacts his revenge by winning a gold medal at the Olympic Games, your drama is ready-made.

From The New Yorker

I hold no brief for Hillary Clinton or anyone else in the race.

From Salon