up the ante
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up the ante
verb ups the ante · upping the ante · upped the ante
-
To raise the stakes of a hand of poker.
With three aces and two jacks, he thought it was safe to up the ante.
Similar: raise the ante, raise the stakes
- Of a dispute, to take an action that raises the stakes, i.e. that increases the chances of conflict.
- To render something more difficult. When runners cross-train for events, they often up the ante by running on sand.
-
To render something more desirable.
The school system cannot raise teachers' salaries, so they are providing better benefits as an effort to up the ante.
Similar: sweeten the pot
Translations
Every language
verb raise the stakes
| Español | redoblar la apuesta, subir la apuesta |
|---|---|
| Português | aumentar a aposta, subir a aposta, subir a parada |
| Français | faire monter les enchères, augmenter la mise, monter la barre, mettre la barre plus haut, surenchérir, corser les choses |
| Italiano | alzare la posta |
| Română | mări miza, plusa |
| Русский | поднима́ть ста́вки podnimátʹ stávki, подня́ть ста́вки podnjátʹ stávki |
| Tiếng Việt | gà, chơi gà |
Talk about this word "up the ante." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/up%20the%20ante. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. up the ante. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/up%20the%20ante "up the ante." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/up%20the%20ante.Cite this
@misc{up_the_ante_2026,
title = {up the ante},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/up%20the%20ante},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
