to roll a Yahtzee
- idiom
- Jargon
- She was ecstatic when she rolled a Yahtzee with all five dice showing six.
Examples
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If you roll a Yahtzee, you get fifty points in the standard rules.
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She was thrilled when she rolled a Yahtzee on her first turn.
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I've never rolled a Yahtzee despite playing dozens of games.
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Did you roll a Yahtzee last night?
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I can't believe I rolled a Yahtzee on my first turn!
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If you roll a Yahtzee, you score fifty points in the game.
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I've always wanted to roll a Yahtzee and win the game.
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
roll + a + Yahtzee
The verb 'roll' (to throw dice) combined with the proper name 'Yahtzee' makes the general idea (making a game-related roll) predictable, but the specific meaning — achieving five identical dice on one throw — depends on knowledge of the game's rules and is not derivable from the words themselves. Because the expression relies on a culturally specific game term rather than compositional semantics, it is only partially predictable to learners who know the constituents.
Etymology
Roll a Yahtzee comes from the dice game Yahtzee and describes the rare moment you roll five dice and they all show the same number, a very special throw. That's why 'to roll a Yahtzee' means to get the game's top score on a single throw.