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Also used as "play it close to your chest," this is a Poker idiom. It refers to the practice of keeping your cards close to you so that nobody can see what you have. The idiom means to keep things to yourself, not to let everyone know what you are planning.
There are many variations of this phrase. Variations include "play it/keep it close to your vest/chest" It is an idiom that means to keep the subject "it" closely guarded and to not share or disseminate the information easily. Example: "You can let them know that we are calculating a forecast for the next quarter but keep the preliminary earnings close to the vest".
Most likely this was derived from the 19th century as a metaphor to card playing essentially telling one not to let others see their cards.
The literal reference is to holding your playing cards close enough to your chest so that no one else can see them. The idea is to prevent others in the game from gaining a strategic advantage over you. You do this by not allowing them--or their possible confederates standing behind you--even a glimpse of your cards. Here is a snippet from Sinclair Lewis's Babbitt (1922), where the setting is a men's club: "He was a large man with hair en brosse, and he knew the latest jokes, but he played poker close to the chest." This is more than a factual description. The author is saying something significant about the man's character.
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago(to play one's cards close to one's vest) to be very cautious with one's dealing with people
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What does 'to play the cards close to your chest' mean?
Refers to being secretive about one's actions with those near to you, such as holding cards close to your chest so that no one near them may see their play coming. More common version of the saying would be "playing it close to the vest".
How do you translate vest in spanish?
Una camiseta does not mean vest- it is a t-shirt vest is chaleco
What does the root word vest mean?
The root word vest means to dress.
What does the stem word vest mean?
clothes
What does this mean 'play it close to the hip'?
It means to "be discrete."
What does the 2 patch mean on a biker vest?
member
Which womens vest has pockets for keys and makeup?
The Power Trip 2009 Model Women’s Scarlet Leather Vest has two zippered pockets on the front to keep your belongings close to you.
What does un gilet mean?
un gilet is a waistcoat or vest.
What does the french word veston mean in English?
it means vest
On a 1 percenter biker vest what does mc mean?
on a bikers vest the one percenter means they will do what it takes.the mc stands for motorcycle club
What does 'chaleco' mean?
It means a little vest. Something for winter wear.
In what ways can women wear a vest?
There are several way a women can wear a vest. Among them are to dress up jeans, toughen up the girly look, punk rock vibe look, dress up a sweater, get cozy with a warmer vest, and play matches.
