force someone's hand

Compel someone to act or speak prematurely or against his or her will. For example, He didn't want to decide just then, but the board forced his hand. This expression probably alludes to the hand (the cards) held in a game such as whist or poker, in which a player is compelled to play some card from his hand or to reveal his hand. [Mid-1800s]

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Ariel	AR-ee-əl (English), ER-ee-əl (English), AY-ree-əl (English)	Hebrew, English, French, Biblical, Biblical Greek
Bagus	-	Indonesian
TheÓDÓRa	-	Icelandic
Nkiruka	-	Western African, Igbo
Gordana	GOR-dah-nah (Serbian, Croatian)	Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian
Ciriaco	chee-ree-AH-ko (Italian), thee-ree-AH-ko (Spanish), see-ree-AH-ko (Latin American Spanish)	Italian, Spanish