fall on a grenade

fall on a grenade (third-person singular simple present falls on a grenade, present participle falling on a grenade, simple past fell on a grenade, past participle fallen on a grenade)

1. To sacrifice oneself for the sake of others.
   • 2000, U.S. News & World Report, volume 129, numbers 1-8, page 99:

     Another longtime Gore adviser says: "Nobody would fall on a grenade for him. People respect him but don't love him. He just doesn't inspire that kind of loyalty."

   • 2007, George Pitagorsky, The Zen Approach to Project Management:

     It is unrealistic in most project settings to expect a team member to “fall on a grenade” to sacrifice his life for the sake of his teammates.

• fall on one's sword
• take one for the team