no dice

Idioms  

1. Also, no go; no soap. No, certainly not; also, impossible. For example, Anthony wanted to borrow my new coat, but Mom said no dice, or We tried to rent the church for the wedding, but it's no go for the date you picked, or Jim asked Dad to help pay for the repairs, but Dad said no soap. All of these slangy expressions indicate refusal or an unsuccessful attempt. No dice, from the 1920s, alludes to an unlucky throw in gambling; no go, alluding to lack of progress, dates from about 1820; and no soap dates from about 1920 and possibly alludes to the phrase it won't wash, meaning “it won't find acceptance.” Also see nothing doing; won't wash.

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Example Sentences

Of course, some culinary pros still say no dice.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 24, 2025

At the Paramount box office, I asked about a refund … no dice.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 14, 2023

I tried entering “nose bleeds, fatigue, fainting, shortness of breath, nausea, open lesions and fingers falling off” into WebMD but no dice.

From New York Times • Sep. 18, 2022

As for Cohen’s vision, so far, no dice.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 25, 2022

Because I asked and he said no dice.

From "Shelter (Book One): A Mickey Bolitar Novel" by Harlan Coben

Related Words

• fruitless
• hollow
• impractical
• ineffective
• ineffectual
• insufficient
• trivial
• unproductive
• unprofitable
• unsuccessful
• useless
• vain
• worthless