get the upper hand

To come to be in a position of advantage, power, and/or control (over someone, something, or some situation). We've been doing everything we can for your father, but I'm afraid the cancer is getting the upper hand. The home team got the upper hand when their opponents' star quarterback went out with an injury.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Hugo	OO-go (Spanish), HYOO-go (English), HUY-kho (Dutch), HOO-go (German)	Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, English, Dutch, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Ancient Germanic (
Germaine	[dʒe'mein]
Cass	KAS	English
Seppo (1)	SEP-po (Finnish)	Finnish, Finnish Mythology
Sokratis	-	Greek
Elli (1)	E-lee	German