reveal (one's) (true) stripes

To reveal what one really believes, thinks, or wants; to act in accordance with one's real personality, character, or disposition. (A less common variant of "show one's (true) colors.") Dave said all along that he only wanted this deal because it was in the company's best interest, but he revealed his true stripes once he realized that he wouldn't get any special commission for his efforts. It's only in times of crisis that your friends will really reveal their stripes.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Augustine (2)	o-goos-TEEN (French), ow-guws-TEE-nə (German)	French, German
Aniketos	-	Greek, Ancient Greek
Adalberto	ah-dahl-BER-to (Italian, Spanish), ə-dəl-BER-too (Portuguese)	Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
Sara	SAH-rah (Spanish, Finnish, Dutch, Polish), ZAH-rah (German), SER-ə (English), SAR-ə (English), SAH:-rah (Arabic)	Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, German
Burnett	[bə(:)'net]
Taimi	TIE-mee	Finnish