[Idiom] idiom

[Musthu]

sir, what does the idiom ' when the chips are down' mean?
Thanks.

 

[emsr2d2]

[STRIKE]sir,[/STRIKE] What does the idiom 'when the chips are down' mean?
Thanks.

It means "when things aren't going well". I believe it comes from poker - "chips" are what you use at the poker table instead of cash, so when the number of chips you have goes down, then you are not doing very well in the game.