trump cards

Unbeatable plays held

Trump cards are the cards in a suit designated to outrank all other suits in a card game.

In figurative use, a trump card is a decisive advantage held in reserve: She played her trump card and revealed the emails.

The phrase suggests strategic timing—saving your strongest asset for when it matters most.

Related

cards · contract bridge · bid whist · ace · wildcard · play your cards · up your sleeve · hold all the cards · secret weapon · hearts · joker · suits · outrank · euchre · tarot cards · dealt · victory · high stakes

Categories
Opposites
strategic advantage

trump cardslosing hand

Inferior card combination

liabilities · weaknesses · disadvantages · weak points · handicaps

resource value

trump cardsduds

Clothes or failures

empty hands · blanks · zeroes · non-starters · busted flushes

revelation timing

trump cardsopen secrets

Unacknowledged common knowledge

Family

triumph, trump, trumped, trumps, trumping, trump card, trumpery

Familiarity
Top 100,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G