trumps Idiom, Proverb

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Come up trumps

When someone is said to have 'come up trumps', they have completed an activity successfully or produced a good result, especially when they were not expected to.

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hold all the trumps|hold|trumps

v. phr. To have the best chance of winning; have all the advantages; have full control. Most of the team wants John for captain and he is the best player. He will he elected captain because he holds all the trumps. Freddy has a quarter and I have no money, so he holds all the trumps and can buy whatever he wants with it.

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turn up trumps

turn up trumps
End well, succeed, as in Some brief courtships and hasty marriages turn up trumps. This expression alludes to card games in which trump cards are superior to cards of other suits. [Late 1700s]