wild card
4
5.0
- noun
- /ˈwaɪld kɑrd/
:
factor desconocido
- When you have a QB who's a wild card, like Manziel, you have a chance.
- wild-card berth
- wild-card playoff
- wild-card team
But there is a percentage chance that he's such a wild card that he overturns the whole system.
- But there is a percentage chance that he's such a wild card that he overturns the whole system.
- And Musk's Twitter takeover could be just the wild card American political discourse needs right now.
- Now, a lot of that's true because president-elect Trump is a wild card.
- Luckily, China had a wild card up its sleeve that would help get Chinese speakers typing on a QWERTY keyboard.
- I I can follow your lead, but I think Tristan, he's just he's our wild card man.
- All of them say that they cannot tell us because we are the wild card.
Examples
-
The main wild card is how the Honduran government chooses to proceed.
-
This Yates guy, he's just a wild card.
-
We always knew he was a wild card.
-
I love being a wild card.
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They saw him as a wild card to begin with.
-
Uh, ahem, she can be a bit of a wild card.
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Herman Cain is a wild card; he might have pulled it off, but he also dropped out when things heated up.
Blog text (21) -
The real wild card here is the enigmatic racer known only as Maxx.
-
And Musk's Twitter takeover could be just the wild card American political discourse needs right now.
-
In the upcoming election, the independent candidate is considered a wild card that could change the outcome significantly.
Synonyms
2
5.1
A person or thing that acts unpredictably and can change the result
1
7.1
A person or thing you do not yet know much about
How Likely
77
2.4
- US
165
1.9
152
3.5
4
5.0
- Informal
14
4.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
The adjective 'wild' conveys unpredictability, so part of the MWE's meaning is recoverable from the constituents; however, 'card' does not literally mean a person or an unpredictable factor and the idiomatic sense relies on the card-game notion of a 'wild card'. A B1 learner who knows both words might guess it denotes something unpredictable but would likely miss the precise usage and nuance without exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Wild card was later used for a person or thing that is like that game card: because it can become anything, it is hard to predict. So calling someone a wild card means they are 'unpredictable' and can change the result.