Go nap explained

To "go nap" is an English expression meaning to score or win five times or, alternatively, to risk everything on one attempt.^[1] More broadly it can mean to take everything.

Origin

The phrase originates from a bid in the card game of Napoleon, known colloquially as "Nap", in which a player undertakes to win all five tricks. Napoleon appeared in the 1880s in England and the phrase has been used since about 1885.^[2]

Derivatives

A derived expression is "nap hand", which is a situation where there is a high chance of success if risk is taken.^[3] It is based on the fact that a player willing to risk announcing a Nap in the card game is likely to have a strong hand.

Examples

• "Ipswich Athletic also went nap, defeating Carlton Colville Town 5-2."^[4]
• "The way in which he went 'nap' on this particular occasion was this: He had exhausted all his policy measures and in order to go 'nap' he went to the Old Country and borrowed as much money as he possibly could. I have supplied honourable gentlemen already with figures which conclusively show that between 1898 and 1903 our public debt went up by leaps and bounds, and that is what I call going 'nap'. It is going 'nap' with the credit of the country."^[5]

Bibliography

• Soanes, Catherine and Angus Stevenson (2005). Oxford Dictionary of English. 2nd edn. Oxford: OUP.

Notes and References

1. Soanes and Stevenson (2005), p. 1168.
2. https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/go-nap Frequency of Use of the Term "Go Nap" Over Time
3. https://dictionary.reverso.net/english-definition/go+nap Nap
4. https://www.suffolkfa.com/news/2022/nov/21/goals-aplenty-in-junior-cup-ties Goals Aplenty in Junior Cup Ties.
5. Herdman (1903). Extract from Parliamentary Debates: House of Representatives. Wellington: New Zealand Government. p. 627.