inside straight

American  

noun

1. Poker. a set of four cards, as the five, seven, eight, and nine, requiring one card of a denomination next above or below the second or third ranking cards of the set to make a straight.

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idioms

1. draw to an inside straight, to build up hopes for something that has little or no chance of happening.

Example Sentences

It’s long odds — it’s like going for an inside straight.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 23, 2023

Lieberman pulled off the political inside straight only once, in 2006.

From Washington Post • Dec. 10, 2022

I’ve tried gently explaining, I’ve tried consequences: We go inside straight away.

From Slate • May 22, 2020

“If we pull an inside straight we could get out of here tonight. But I don’t think that’s likely,” House Speaker Shap Smith, D-Morristown, said Friday afternoon.

From Washington Times • May 6, 2016

Its branch was pulled up and pointed inside straight at the fire; the signal given, “Down with number two!” and a hiss was followed by volumes of steam.

From Fighting the Flames by Ballantyne, R. M. (Robert Michael)