Taking a gamble
Idioms, Stage 4chunk 2 of 22Luck, trouble & outcomes
Taking a chance: trying with nothing to lose, betting everything, risky moves, offers that look too good.
- damemotonothing to lose by tryingliterally “if it fails, back to where you started”
- ichi ka bachi katake the gamble, all or nothingliterally “one or eight”
- abunai hashi o watarutake a big (often shady) riskliterally “cross a dangerous bridge”
- umai hanashia sweet deal, an easy-money offer (usually doubted)literally “a tasty talk (proposal)”
Mix-ups dame moto (nothing to lose) vs ichi ka bachi ka (all or nothing); its bachi is unrelated to bachi ga ataru (punishment) in Comes back on you.
damemoto
polite damemoto desu
“if it fails, back to where you started”
nothing to lose by trying
In English: worth a shot
Said before trying a long shot: damemoto de kiite miru (I'll ask anyway, nothing to lose). It is also a common softener before a cheeky request (damemoto na n da kedo ...), even at work.
Short for dame de motomoto.
damemoto de kiite miru yo
I'll ask anyway, nothing to lose.
ダメ元で聞いてみるよ
damemoto de kiite mimasu
I'll ask anyway; it's worth a shot.
ダメ元で聞いてみます
Written ダメ元 · だめもとHeard 24× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ichi ka bachi ka, abunai hashi o wataruMain list dame (Stage 1), -te miru (Stage 1)
ichi ka bachi ka
“one or eight”
take the gamble, all or nothing
In English: go for broke
Said before a risky, all-out attempt, nearly always as ichi ka bachi ka yatte miru (I'll just risk it). It works like an adverb and goes before the verb.
Plain alternative: kake (a gamble), as in kake da ne.
ichi ka bachi ka yatte miyou
Let's just risk it and go for it.
一か八かやってみよう
ichi ka bachi ka yatte mimashou
Let's take the gamble and try.
一か八かやってみましょう
Written 一か八か · いちかばちかHeard 42× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside damemoto, abunai hashi o wataruMain list -ka (Stage 2), -te miru (Stage 1)
abunai hashi o wataru
polite abunai hashi o watarimasu
“cross a dangerous bridge”
take a big (often shady) risk
Said about taking a risk that could land you in trouble, usually over money or bending rules rather than physical danger. Often about a risk already taken (kimi no tame ni abunai hashi o watatta, I stuck my neck out for you; kanari abunai hashi o watatteru, you're skating on thin ice) or someone's habits (abunai hashi o wataru taipu), and also to refuse one: sonna abunai hashi wa wataranai.
Plain alternative: risuku ga takai (it's too risky).
sonna abunai hashi, wataritakunai yo.
I don't want to take a risk like that.
そんな危ない橋、渡りたくないよ。
sonna abunai hashi wa wataremasen yo.
I can't take a risk like that.
そんな危ない橋は渡れませんよ。
Written 危ない橋を渡る · あぶないはしをわたるHeard 25× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside damemoto, ichi ka bachi kaMain list abunai (Stage 2), sonna (Stage 2), -tai (Stage 2), -eru / -rareru (Stage 2)
umai hanashi
polite umai hanashi desu ne
“a tasty talk (proposal)”
a sweet deal, an easy-money offer (usually doubted)
In English: a sweet deal
Said about deals, jobs and investments that promise easy gain. The person pitching says it straight (umai hanashi nan da yo), and everyone else usually doubts it: sonna umai hanashi aru wake nai (there's no way that's real), or umai hanashi ni wa ura ga aru (every sweet deal has a catch).
Same thing, very common casually: oishii hanashi. Saying: umai hanashi ni wa ura ga aru (a sweet deal always has a catch).
sonna umai hanashi, aru wake nai jan.
There's no way a deal that good is real.
そんなうまい話、あるわけないじゃん。
sonna umai hanashi wa nai to omoimasu yo.
I doubt a deal that good really exists.
そんなうまい話はないと思いますよ。
Written うまい話 · うまいはなしHeard 21× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesMain list sonna (Stage 2), aru (Stage 1), wake nai (Stage 3), jan (Stage 3)