to play the rape card
- idiom
- Offensive
:
usar la acusación de violación
- It's irresponsible to play the rape card in a debate just to win public support.
Examples
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Some critics argued that the politician was playing the rape card to distract from the real issues.
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During the trial, the defense accused the plaintiff of playing the rape card to influence the jury.
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Don't play the rape card to gain sympathy!
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She always plays the rape card in arguments.
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During the trial, the defense accused the plaintiff of playing the rape card to influence the jury.
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It's irresponsible to play the rape card in a debate just to win public support.
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Some critics argued that the politician was playing the rape card to distract from the real issues.
How Manipulative
- Offensive
282
1.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
The expression fits the productive metaphorical pattern 'play the X card' where 'play' + 'card' indicates deploying a topic or tactic; a learner who knows 'play', 'card' and 'rape' may infer that someone is using the topic of rape strategically. However, the manipulative/sympathy-seeking nuance and the idiomatic use of 'play the ... card' are not fully predictable from the literal words without prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Play the rape card uses the image of a card game: to play a card is to make a strong move, and here 'rape' marks a very serious accusation used as that move. So, it means 'to use a rape accusation to get sympathy or an advantage, often in a manipulative way'.