Example: She decided to keep her cards close to her chest during the meeting.
Definition
"To keep one's cards close to one's chest" means to remain secretive or cautious about one's plans, intentions, or information, revealing little to others in order to maintain an advantage or avoid giving away important details.
Translations
no mostrar sus cartas
niet het achterste van zijn tong laten zien
no ensenyar les cartes
garder ses cartes pour soi
seine Karten nicht zeigen
Etymology
The phrase "to keep one's cards close to one's chest" originates from card games like poker, where players hold their cards close to prevent opponents from seeing them. It metaphorically evolved to mean keeping one's intentions or information secret. Did you know? This expression has been used since at least the 18th century.
Learn to use this expression actively
"To keep one's cards close to one's chest" appears in the Vocaplus list "English - General - Idioms and Proverbs - (C2) - set 1", containing 106 commonly used expressions.
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