Word.ws English Dictionary

when the chips are down

when the chips are down phrase: when the pressure is on; when the situation is urgent or critical.

Phrase

when the chips are down

  1. (idiomatic) When the pressure is on; when the situation is urgent or critical.
    • He wasn't a very talented musician but, when the chips were down, he played well.
    • When the chips are down, you need to make tough decisions.

when the chips are down meaning in Tamil

when the chips are down in Tamil

இக்கட்டான சூழ்நிலையில், நெருக்கடியான கட்டத்தில்

Origin of when the chips are down

From the game of poker, in which chips laid down on the table are staked.

Questions about when the chips are down

What does when the chips are down mean?
When the chips are down means when the pressure is on; when the situation is urgent or critical.
What is when the chips are down in Tamil?
When the chips are down in Tamil is இக்கட்டான சூழ்நிலையில், நெருக்கடியான கட்டத்தில். See When the chips are down meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is when the chips are down?
When the chips are down is a phrase.

Words near when the chips are down in the dictionary

  1. when shrimps whistle
  2. when the balloon goes up
  3. when the cat's away
  4. when the cat's away the mice play
  5. when the cat's away the mice will play
  6. when the chips are down
  7. when the going gets tough, the tough get going
  8. when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro
  9. when the looting starts, the shooting starts
  10. when the music stops
  11. when the time comes

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: when the chips are down (page history and authors); when the chips are down (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-uk-when_the_chips_are_down.ogg, En-au-when the chips are down.ogg.

Cite this entry: “when the chips are down.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/when_the_chips_are_down. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.