English idiom

force someone's hand

Register · Neutral CEFR B2

Post

Figurative meaning

To pressure someone into acting, often sooner than they had planned.

Word picture

Pressure is pictured physically moving a person's hand before they freely choose to act.

Example

“The leaked memo forced the minister's hand, prompting an immediate announcement.”

Dictionary details

Component words

force hand

Tags

Expressions connected by reviewed component words or topic tags.

hand in glove

working together in an extremely close and cooperative way

win hands down

to win easily, without effort

cap in hand

in a humble or pleading manner when asking someone for help or a favor

sleight of hand

clever and subtle trickery used to mislead people

carrot and stick

a strategy that uses both incentives and penalties to steer behavior

free rein

complete freedom to make choices or act without interference

Source methodology

Meanings, register, CEFR, and examples come from the reviewed dictionary record. Expression notes may describe a reviewed present-day word picture or a background note; they are not presented as verified etymology.

External links

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