go for the gloves
English edit
Etymology edit
Perhaps from the old custom of ladies betting their gloves, expecting to be paid if they won but not to pay if they lost.
Verb edit
go for the gloves (third-person singular simple present goes for the gloves, present participle going for the gloves, simple past went for the gloves, past participle gone for the gloves)
- (gambling) To bet against a racehorse on the chance of its losing, without having the wherewithal to pay if it wins.
References edit
- John Camden Hotten (1873) The Slang Dictionary