A: It’s a surprise that your team has won the tournament. B: Indeed! We thought the visiting team would easily win the game, but after that last-minute goal all bets were off! Note: A slang expression originally referring to a gambling context, the phrase is used to indicate that a situation has become unpredictable. People may also use the phrase as a way of expressing the end of a pre-existing agreement. In gambling, an individual plays a game by placing a bet on a game’s result. This expression may indicate a change in circumstances that forces an altered viewpoint or action. If random chance or unpredictable factors call an action’s outcome into question, a “bet” cannot be placed on the outcome with any degree of certainty. |