I heard this phrase in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" and also found it online by googling it.
What does the phrase mean?
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Sign up to join this communityI heard this phrase in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" and also found it online by googling it.
What does the phrase mean?
It means that a person keeps their motivations a secret. It comes from poker: you hold your cards close to your "vest" or body so you don't "tip your hand" or accidentally allow the other players to see your cards.
This is a really nice article about the phrase, and includes some related poker phrases.
Note: The linked article is The Maven's Word of the Day from August 25, 2000. This series of articles was published by Random House between 1996 to 2001. I cannot find an online archive (other than the Wayback), although I will continue to look.
The Wayback Machine hung for me, but their "Getting Impatient" link worked just fine.
Incidentally, the article ends by mentioning several poker-based idioms (e.g., lay your cards on the table, wear your poker face, etc.). Conspicuously absent, though, was the term "all-in," which seems to have gained traction more recently (the article is more than a decade old now). Still this emphasizes how poker-inspired idioms are STILL making their way into everyday speech.