ıÜüabove board

- honest, not secret (originally players showed their honesty by keeping their hands above the board when playing a game)

The real estate agent was always above board when dealing with people who were trying to buy a house.

according to Hoyle

- according to the rules (Hoyle wrote a well-known book about card games)

According to Hoyle we were not permitted to enter the convention site but in reality we were able to enter easily.

an ace in the hole

- something that you can use to gain an advantage (when playing cards an ace is face down so the other players in a card game can't see it)

The team had an ace in the hole and decided to use it when they brought out their star goalkeeper to play.

ante up

- produce or pay a necessary amount of money

We all had to ante up quickly in order to collect the money for our holiday.

call a spade a spade

- call a person or thing a name that is true, speak in plain language

I decided to call a spade a spade and tell our supervisor what was wrong with our workplace.

call someone's bluff

- challenge someone to show that they are not being deceptive and can actually do what they say they can do (from poker where one makes an opponent show his or her cards to show that they are weaker than they are pretending them to be)

My girlfriend always said that she didn't want to get married so I called her bluff and asked her to marry me. She said yes.

cash in one's chips

- to die (the chips in many gambling games are changed into cash at the end of a game)

After an honorable and fruitful career the judge cashed in his chips at the age of ninety years.

come/turn up trumps

- have a better performance or outcome than is expected (trumps are the playing cards that are chosen to be ranked higher than the others)

We entered the contest with little hope of success but our performance came up trumps which was a big surprise to everyone.

deal someone in

- include someone

I hope that my friend will deal me in on his new computer business.

be dealt a bad hand/deal someone a bad hand

- receive or give someone bad cards in a card game, receive disadvantages in something

The boy was dealt a bad hand when he was a child and always was at a disadvantage in his life.

follow suit

- play a card of the same suit, follow the example of another

The small university followed suit with the other universities and decided to raise their tuition fees.

force someone's hand

- make someone do something that they don't want to do at that time

The man threatened to quit his job so the company decided to force his hand and make him either continue or quit.

have an ace up one's sleeve

- something that you can use to gain an advantage (in a card game the ace is often the most valuable card and a cheater could have an ace up their sleeve to use against an opponent)

When the football players were ready to go on strike, the team owners had an ace up their sleeve and offered more money and stopped the strike.

have a card up one's sleeve

- have a reserve plan or a secret advantage

The man had a card up his sleeve when he went to the bank to ask for more money for his business.

hold all the aces

- have all the advantages (from the ace which is the most valuable card in many card games)

The employer held all the aces when they began to negotiate with the small union.

hold all the cards

- be in a strong or advantageous position (like a winning hand in a card game)

The company held all the cards when the union decided to go on strike to achieve their goals.

hold all the trumps

- have the best chance of winning, have all the advantages

The striker holds all the trumps and should easily be elected as captain of the football team.

house of cards

- a poorly thought out plan, something that is badly put together and easily knocked over

The large company was like a house of cards and when there were financial problems in one area the whole business was hurt.

in spades

- as much or more than you could want (spades are the highest ranking cards in the game of bridge)

The sick child was hoping to receive some cards when he was in the hospital but when the radio talked about his illness he received them in spades.

in the cards

- possible or likely (as in using playing cards or tarot cards to tell the future)

Although the airport expansion was in the cards nobody knew exactly when it would begin.

lost in the shuffle

- be overlooked in a confused or crowded situation

When we moved to a new office all of our sales receipts were lost in the shuffle of the move

not playing with a full deck

- mentally deficient (like a deck of playing cards with some cards missing)

The student told unlikely stories about his life which made us believe that he was not playing with a full deck.

play one's ace

- use one's best resources (like an ace in cards)

The lawyer played his ace when he showed the judge the new information.

play one's cards close to one's chest

- be extremely secretive and cautious about something (holding playing cards close to your chest so the other players can't see them)

My boss always plays his cards close to his chest when he is negotiating with another company.

play one's cards right

- make the best use of your opportunities or what you have

I told my friend that if he plays his cards right he will be able to go on the business trip to Europe.

poker face

- a face with no expression (done in the game of poker so that nobody knows if you have good cards or not)

The politician had a poker face when he tried to defend himself against the scandal.

put (lay) one's cards on the table

- be open and honest about one's intentions or resources

I put my cards on the table and told my boss about my plans to return to school and study economics.

raise the ante

- increase what is at stake or under discussion in a dispute or conflict (an ante is the amount of money that you put on the table before beginning a card game)

The government raised the ante when they decided to cancel the contract of the health care workers.

show one's hand

- reveal one's plans

I didn't want to show my hand but I was forced to tell my family about my plans to go overseas to study.

shuffle the cards/deck

- change policy

The government was in the middle of an economic crisis so they did not want to shuffle the deck and cause any more uncertainity.

stack the deck

- unfairly arrange things for or against someone so that a person has an unfair advantage or disadvantage

The league stacked the deck against the new team so that the older, more established teams could advance to the playoffs.

trump card

- something that you hold back to use to win success if nothing else works (a trump card is a card that is chosen to temporarily be stronger than the other cards)

The boxer's trump card in his desire for another fight was his great popularity with the fans.

up the ante

- increase what is at stake or under discussion in a dispute or conflict (an ante is the amount of money that you put on the table before beginning a card game)

The actor upped the ante in his dispute with the movie studio when he refused to appear for the movie preparation.

when the chips are down

- when one is in a difficult or serious situation (chips are used in gambling), when the winner or loser of a card game or a bet is decided

The man is a good manager and when the chips are down he is always able to overcome his difficulties.