Top Pages
Home
A-Z Glossary
Punctuation
A-Z Confused Words
Common Mistakes
(ordered by seriousness) Top Tip
Get a grammar checker
for your browser ESL Vocabulary Lists Parts of Speech Lists Tests and Games Awkward Plurals Sayings and Proverbs Twitter YouTube
(ordered by seriousness) Top Tip
Get a grammar checker
for your browser ESL Vocabulary Lists Parts of Speech Lists Tests and Games Awkward Plurals Sayings and Proverbs Twitter YouTube
Had Your Chips (Origin)
What Is the Origin of the Saying "Had Your Chips"?
Meaning to run out of luck or failure is inevitable, the term had your chips has its roots in gambling in casinos. A desperate gambler would be told by the casino staff that he had had all his chips (i.e., his gambling for the night had come to an end).A Competing Theory
The workers in a dockyard were sometimes able to take home spare pieces of timber, known as chips. Many workers would try to take too many and, as a consequence, would have this privilege revoked. They would be told they’d had all their chips.
Previous and Next Sayings
Test Your Knowledge of English Proverbs and Idioms
Ready for the Test?
More Proverbs, Sayings, and Idioms
Help Us Improve Grammar Monster
- Do you disagree with something on this page?
- Did you spot a typo?
Find Us Quicker!
- When using a search engine (e.g., Google, Bing), you will find Grammar Monster quicker if you add #gm to your search term.
Next lesson >