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Glite Dictionary
to deal someone a bad hand

to deal someone a bad hand

1 6.7
Put someone into a difficult situation they cannot control because of bad luck
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : dejar a alguien en una mala situación

Examples

  • It's not CK's fault that AS was dealt a bad hand.

    Blog text (22)

  • Many people believe that life can sometimes deal someone a bad hand with unexpected challenges.

  • She felt that circumstances had dealt her a bad hand, making her struggle to achieve her dreams.

  • It's unfair how some are dealt a bad hand while others find success easily.

Synonyms

to deal a bad hand
vsto deal someone a bad hand
  • Informal
1 7.9

To put someone into a bad or difficult situation because of bad luck

is the same meaning but often names the person directly in use
to straiten
vsto deal someone a bad hand
  • Archaic
1 9.8

Cause someone to have little money

refers to general bad situations caused by outside circumstances rather than money only
to draw the short end of the stick
vsto deal someone a bad hand
  • Informal
8.2

To end up by chance with an unpleasant task or in a worse position

puts someone in difficulty because of outside circumstances rather than being selected

Antonyms

help
∞ 1.0

An act that makes something easier for someone

favor
  • US
∞ 1.0

An act of help done without expecting anything back

How Bad

to destroy
  • Informal
557 1.7
to deal someone a bad hand
  • Informal
1 6.7

Surface Forms

deal someone a bad hand infinitive
dealing someone a bad hand present participle
deals someone a bad hand third person singular
dealt someone a bad hand past
dealt someone a bad hand past participle

Morphology

deal + someone + a + bad + hand

The expression maps a literal card-dealing scenario ('deal' + 'hand' + 'bad') onto life circumstances: giving someone poor cards = placing them in an unfortunate situation. A B1 learner who knows 'hand' as a set of cards and 'deal' in the sense of distributing can infer the meaning, but it depends on a cultural/metaphorical mapping and is not strictly compositional, so it is only partially transparent.

Etymology

The phrase deal someone a bad hand comes from card games, where a dealer deals each player a hand of cards and a bad hand makes it hard to win. So, to be dealt a bad hand means to be given a 'difficult or unfortunate' situation by chance, not by your own choice.