Go Fish
6
3.0
- noun
- /ɡoʊ fɪʃ/
:
Go Fish
- First she climbed up on the bed for a game of Go Fish; then she discovered that Julia's angular midriff made a perfect tea table for her animals.
- play Go Fish
- game of Go Fish
- rounds of Go Fish
Examples
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- We can play Go Fish if you like.
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My wife and kids had a terrific time in the living room, laughing and playing Go Fish, while I sat on the couch, outraged, my back straight, staring silently towards the bathroom until he finished.
Fiction book (2002) -
- Wanna play Go Fish?
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- What about Go Fish?
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How am I supposed to cheat at "Go Fish?"
Fiction book (2002) -
"How about a hot game of Go Fish?" With mittens on, it was hard to hold the cards.
Fiction book (1999) -
Just ask Gracie how many times she's whooped me at Go Fish.
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He's playing Go Fish.
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PIRATE SHIP AT SEA: LARRY and MR. LUNT are on deck at a small folding table, playing Go Fish with a deck of fish cards. MR. LUNT has a big "handful" of cards.
Fiction book (2002) -
The children laughed and shouted as they played Go Fish in the living room.
Synonyms
43
1.1
A game played with playing cards, for example poker, that often needs skill or luck
How Strategic
Surface Forms
Morphology
go + Fish
The phrase 'Go Fish' is the conventional name of a card game (and an in-play imperative to draw from the deck) and its meaning is not compositionally derived from 'go' (move/take a turn) + 'fish' (the animal/action). A B1 learner who knows the constituent words would likely infer a literal action (go catch fish) rather than a card game, so the expression is idiomatic and non‑predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Go Fish is named for the moment in the game when a player asks for a card and the other player says 'go fish' because they do not have it, so the asker must draw from the pile. The name gives a simple image: the player must go and fish in the pile of cards like reaching into a small pond, which is why the phrase fits the action of taking a new card.