fool's mate

British

noun

chess a checkmate achieved by Black's second move: the quickest possible mate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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fool's mate

Helena's knowledge of motor cars and engine trouble was not extensive—she was conversant only with the "fool's mate" of motoring.

From The Miracle Man by Packard, Frank L. (Frank Lucius)

Well, you've got a fool's mate in Sir George Covert, the insufferable dandy!

From The Maid-At-Arms by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023