card sharp
1
9.3
- noun
- /kɑrd ʃɑrp/
- Informal
:
tramposo de cartas
- It's everyone from thieves and liars to the brothel owner and those card-sharps last night.
Examples
-
You'll be looking for a job chasing pickpockets and card sharps in the future.
Fiction book (1993) -
Card sharp.
-
What if this Arne guy is a card sharp?
Academic text (2010) -
Or a card sharp.
Fiction book (1998) -
Hello, card sharps.
-
In the smoky back room of the casino, he was known as a notorious card sharp who always had an ace up his sleeve.
-
The seasoned gambler warned us about the card sharp who was known to cheat unsuspecting players out of their money.
-
After losing a significant amount at the poker table, I realized that the charming player was actually a skilled card sharp.
Synonyms
50
9.9
A person who cheats at card games to win money
3
8.2
A person who is very good at playing cards and cheats to win
1
8.8
A person who cheats at card games to win money
1
9.6
A person who cheats at card games to win money from other players
1
9.9
A card player who cheats to win money
A person who cheats at card games to win money
A person who cheats at card games to win money
How Professional
Surface Forms
Morphology
A B1 learner who knows 'cards' and 'sharp' (as 'clever' or 'astute') could guess this refers to someone skilled or cunning with cards, but the specific sense 'cheater at card games' relies on an idiomatic noun use of 'sharp' (swindler) that is not automatically derived. Because the cheating meaning is an extension of 'clever/cunning' and requires lexicalized knowledge, the expression is partially but not fully predictable to learners.
Etymology
The noun card sharp may come from old slang where sharp meant a cheat who took other people's money. The image of a sharp working at the card table helps explain why card sharp means 'a person who cheats at card games'.