tip one's hand



tip one's hand

Accidentally reveal one's intentions, as in He avoided any comments on birthdays for fear of tipping his hand about the surprise party . This idiom probably alludes to holding one's hand in such a way that others can see the cards one is holding. [Colloquial; early 1900s]
See also: hand, tip

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
Gregorios-Greek, Late Greek
Randi (1)RAN-deeEnglish
Ramachandra-Hinduism, Indian, Kannada, Telugu
Ekber-Turkish
VenlaVEN-lahFinnish
LowellLO-əlEnglish