Poker idioms

Here is a list of poker idioms.

Cash in one’s chips

To cash in one’s chips is to pass away.

• My granddaughter cashed in her chips at the age of ninety.

Cash in one’s chips can also mean ‘sell something for a profit’.

• The shares I bought five years ago had appreciated so much in value that I decided to cash in my chips and take the money.

Come up trumps

To come up trumps is to complete something successfully.

• We weren’t hopeful of winning, but we came up trumps.

Come within an ace of (doing something)

To come within an ace of something is to almost succeed in it.

• We came within an ace of signing the contract, but at the last moment the client backed out.

Deal someone in

To deal someone in is to include them.

• I hope you will deal me in when you launch your new business.

A few cards short of a deck

If somebody is a few cards short of a deck, they are crazy.

• I think she is a few cards short of a deck. She always does very strange things.

Follow suit

To follow suit is to follow the examples of someone else.

• Martin went to work for a call center and his brother followed suit.

To have a card up one’s sleeve

To have a card up your sleeve is to have a secret advantage.

• He must have a card up his sleeve; otherwise, he wouldn’t have rejected that offer.