to be the ticket
3
8.1
- idiom
- Informal
:
ser la clave
- We do have a scale, and this could be the ticket to a golden tomahawk all to yourself.
And I said, huh, maybe this is the ticket.
- And I said, huh, maybe this is the ticket.
Examples
-
This is the ticket I've been waiting for all my life, man.
-
That could be the ticket for you, buddy.
Fiction book (1993) -
Because I think that really could be the ticket for you.
-
To keep him closer to home, closer to her, that was the ticket.
Fiction book (1996) -
So, a jump back to your youth might be the ticket.
Fiction book (2002) -
Use social networking sites carefully, and they may just be the ticket to your next great gig.
Blog text (3) -
If so, then a new adventure package from Kaplan in New Zealand might just be the ticket for you!
Blog text (28) -
Now, to have the phone work as a 3G modem would be the ticket.
Blog text (23) -
So, if your blog has video, audio, and lots of photos, this might be the ticket for you—especially if you use an iPad.
Blog text (17) -
If you're struggling to lose weight, a balanced diet and regular exercise could be the ticket to your success.
Synonyms
26
3.5
To be enough to meet a need or purpose
5
6.1
Exactly what you need in a particular situation
Antonyms
How Effective
241
3.8
- Informal
80
3.7
- Informal
3
8.1
- Informal
19
3.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase relies on a metaphorical extension of 'ticket' from a literal pass/admission to 'the means or thing that guarantees success.' While 'be' + noun composition is transparent, the shifted sense of 'ticket' is not fully predictable from the basic word knowledge and likely requires prior exposure, so learners may only partially infer the meaning.
Etymology
The idiom be the ticket comes from the idea of a ticket for an event: a ticket is the one thing you must have to get in. So people began to call anything that is exactly right 'the ticket', and today when something is the ticket it means 'the essential or perfect thing'.