tirer son épingle du jeu
French
editEtymology
editLiterally, “to pull one's pin out of the game”, a reference to a 15th century children's game with pins and a ball, similar to mikado.
Pronunciation
editVerb
edit- (figuratively) to play one's cards right; to make it out of a potentially bad situation relatively unscathed; to pull out skilfully while the going is still good