play all (of) (one's) cards

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play all (of) (one's) cards

To be make use of all of the energy, resources, options, etc., that one has at one's disposal at once, rather than shrewd, careful, or calculating with them. Typically used in negative constructions. Of course I know she's been lying to me, but I don't want to play all of my cards at once. I want to see how long she'll keep up this charade. We've got some leverage that we can use during negotiations, but we shouldn't play all our cards at once. Let's see how much they're willing to acquiesce first.
See also: all, card, play
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
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