to pull the gender card
- idiom
- Literature
:
sacar la carta de género
- Critics claimed that the politician pulled the gender card when challenged on her record.
Examples
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During the meeting, she was accused of pulling the gender card to avoid further scrutiny.
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He resented the implication that he was pulling the gender card to win sympathy from the judges.
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Don't pull the gender card just to avoid responsibility!
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She often pulls the gender card in discussions.
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Critics claimed that the politician pulled the gender card when challenged on her record.
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During the meeting, she was accused of pulling the gender card to avoid further scrutiny.
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He resented the implication that he was pulling the gender card to win sympathy from the judges.
Synonyms
1
8.0
To mention someone's gender to gain an advantage in a discussion
How Manipulative
- Literature
∞
3.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
A learner who knows 'pull', 'gender', and 'card' can likely infer that the phrase involves invoking someone's gender, but the specific pragmatic sense of using gender as a tactical advantage or to deflect criticism is idiomatic and not directly literal. The expression relies on a metaphorical 'card' = a tactical play (as in 'play the race card'), so the connection is partially clear but requires cultural/pragmatic knowledge, making it only partially predictable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
The phrase pull the gender card gives a clear picture: someone takes out a card marked gender and pulls it like a special move to change the game or stop an attack. So it means 'to mention or use gender to get an advantage or avoid criticism'.