See keep one's cards close to one's chest on Wiktionary
{
"etymology_text": "The figurative sense is a self-evident extension from the literal sense.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "keeps one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "keeping one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "kept one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "kept one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "keep<,,kept> one's cards close to one's chest"
},
"expansion": "keep one's cards close to one's chest (third-person singular simple present keeps one's cards close to one's chest, present participle keeping one's cards close to one's chest, simple past and past participle kept one's cards close to one's chest)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "64 36",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "65 35",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Entries with translation boxes",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "67 33",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Pages with 1 entry",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "69 31",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Pages with entries",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "70 30",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "67 33",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with French translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "70 30",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with German translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "67 33",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Polish translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "72 28",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1997, Sabine Rewald, “Balthus's Magic Mountain”, in The Burlington Magazine, volume 139, number 1134, page 626:",
"text": "Balthus has always kept his cards close to his chest. When I asked him if Summertime was a transcription of Poussin's Echo and Narcissus—a variant of his lost copy—he did not reply.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2002 December 25, Anil Netto, “Malaysia: Year of surprises and hardships”, in Asia Times, retrieved 2008-10-25:",
"text": "Abdullah has not yet revealed his choice for the No 2 post when he takes over as prime minister, preferring to keep his cards close to his chest.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2023 June 28, Ben Jones, “Are we getting rid of our (still useful) rolling stock too early?”, in RAIL, number 986, page 29:",
"text": "However, the operator is keeping its cards close to its chest.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To avoid revealing one's thoughts, circumstances, or plans."
],
"id": "en-keep_one's_cards_close_to_one's_chest-en-verb-taYjB9aI",
"links": [
[
"reveal",
"reveal"
],
[
"thought",
"thought"
],
[
"circumstance",
"circumstance"
],
[
"plan",
"plan"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, figurative) To avoid revealing one's thoughts, circumstances, or plans."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "keep one's counsel"
},
{
"word": "chest one's cards"
}
],
"tags": [
"figuratively",
"idiomatic"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "salailla"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "pitää korttinsa piilossa"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "cacher son jeu"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "sich nicht in die Karten schauen lassen"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "Translations",
"tags": [
"imperfective"
],
"word": "nie odkrywać kart"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "Translations",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "nie odkryć kart"
},
{
"_dis1": "66 34",
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "no soltar prenda"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
"kind": "topical",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Card games",
"orig": "en:Card games",
"parents": [
"Games",
"Recreation",
"Human activity",
"Human behaviour",
"Human",
"All topics",
"Fundamental"
],
"source": "w"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To hold one's hand close to one's chest so that other players cannot see the cards."
],
"id": "en-keep_one's_cards_close_to_one's_chest-en-verb-xwAPTHso",
"links": [
[
"card game",
"card game"
],
[
"hand",
"hand"
],
[
"chest",
"chest"
],
[
"player",
"player"
],
[
"card",
"card"
]
],
"qualifier": "literal",
"raw_glosses": [
"(card games, literal) To hold one's hand close to one's chest so that other players cannot see the cards."
],
"related": [
{
"_dis1": "11 89",
"word": "hide the ball"
}
],
"topics": [
"card-games",
"games"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "En-au-keep one's cards close to one's chest.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b3/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"_dis1": "49 51",
"sense": "both senses",
"word": "chest one's cards"
}
],
"word": "keep one's cards close to one's chest"
}
{
"categories": [
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English verbs",
"Entries with translation boxes",
"Pages with 1 entry",
"Pages with entries",
"Terms with Finnish translations",
"Terms with French translations",
"Terms with German translations",
"Terms with Polish translations",
"Terms with Spanish translations",
"Translation table header lacks gloss"
],
"etymology_text": "The figurative sense is a self-evident extension from the literal sense.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "keeps one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "keeping one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "kept one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "kept one's cards close to one's chest",
"tags": [
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "keep<,,kept> one's cards close to one's chest"
},
"expansion": "keep one's cards close to one's chest (third-person singular simple present keeps one's cards close to one's chest, present participle keeping one's cards close to one's chest, simple past and past participle kept one's cards close to one's chest)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"related": [
{
"word": "hide the ball"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1997, Sabine Rewald, “Balthus's Magic Mountain”, in The Burlington Magazine, volume 139, number 1134, page 626:",
"text": "Balthus has always kept his cards close to his chest. When I asked him if Summertime was a transcription of Poussin's Echo and Narcissus—a variant of his lost copy—he did not reply.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2002 December 25, Anil Netto, “Malaysia: Year of surprises and hardships”, in Asia Times, retrieved 2008-10-25:",
"text": "Abdullah has not yet revealed his choice for the No 2 post when he takes over as prime minister, preferring to keep his cards close to his chest.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2023 June 28, Ben Jones, “Are we getting rid of our (still useful) rolling stock too early?”, in RAIL, number 986, page 29:",
"text": "However, the operator is keeping its cards close to its chest.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To avoid revealing one's thoughts, circumstances, or plans."
],
"links": [
[
"reveal",
"reveal"
],
[
"thought",
"thought"
],
[
"circumstance",
"circumstance"
],
[
"plan",
"plan"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, figurative) To avoid revealing one's thoughts, circumstances, or plans."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "keep one's counsel"
},
{
"word": "chest one's cards"
}
],
"tags": [
"figuratively",
"idiomatic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"en:Card games"
],
"glosses": [
"To hold one's hand close to one's chest so that other players cannot see the cards."
],
"links": [
[
"card game",
"card game"
],
[
"hand",
"hand"
],
[
"chest",
"chest"
],
[
"player",
"player"
],
[
"card",
"card"
]
],
"qualifier": "literal",
"raw_glosses": [
"(card games, literal) To hold one's hand close to one's chest so that other players cannot see the cards."
],
"topics": [
"card-games",
"games"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "En-au-keep one's cards close to one's chest.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b3/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/En-au-keep_one%27s_cards_close_to_one%27s_chest.ogg"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"sense": "both senses",
"word": "chest one's cards"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "salailla"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "pitää korttinsa piilossa"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "cacher son jeu"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "sich nicht in die Karten schauen lassen"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "Translations",
"tags": [
"imperfective"
],
"word": "nie odkrywać kart"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "Translations",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "nie odkryć kart"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "Translations",
"word": "no soltar prenda"
}
],
"word": "keep one's cards close to one's chest"
}
Download raw JSONL data for keep one's cards close to one's chest meaning in All languages combined (4.2kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-02-17 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-02-02 using wiktextract (ca09fec and c40eb85). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
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