pull out of the hat
Surprise with unexpectedly
To pull something out of the hat is to produce it unexpectedly, as if by magic—from the conjurer's trick of pulling a rabbit from an empty top hat.
The phrase usually describes solving a problem or achieving success at the last moment through surprising resourcefulness: We were losing badly, but somehow she pulled a victory out of the hat.
Often appears as pull a rabbit out of the hat when emphasizing the miraculous nature of the feat.
- magic trickPerformed feat seeming impossible
- trickDeliberate deception
- wandThin ceremonial stick
- hocus pocusDeceptive nonsense or incantation
- sleight of handSkillful manual deception
rabbit · improvisation · conjure · out of thin air · resourcefulness · prestidigitation · lateral thinking · innovation · originality · cleverness · thinking outside the box · problem-solving · adaptability · stroke of genius · brainstorming · gamble · lucky break · randomness
pull out of the hatplan ahead
Arrange things in advance
lay the groundwork · do one's homework · think through · map out · strategize