• Buddahriffic@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      It comes from the word “triumph”, which means victory. That word itself comes from Latin “triumphus” and the Roman celebration thrown for a victorious military leader.

      It was shortened to “trump” while being used in card games, usually to indicate one suit having precedence over another. Then eventually it worked its way back into general language with the same meaning as “triumph”.

      Edit: that’s in the context of “trump” the verb that indicates victory. For “trumped up charges”, it might come from an old English verb, “trumpen”, which means to deceive or cheat, or “trumpery”, which is pretty much a noun version of “trumpen” in meaning, though apparently it comes from a French word, “tromper”, which means to deceive (and could also be the root of “trumpen”).

      • HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        Huh, I thought it came from music, because we’re always telling the trumpet players to blow it out their ass. Love those dudes.

      • sp3ctr4l@lemmy.zip
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        7 months ago

        You could also use it in many gaming contexts.

        Yes, Pokemon A is faster than Pokemon B, but A is paralyzed, so B trumps the speed stat difference and goes first.

        Yes, you used your ultimate combo in blah blah fighting game, but it connected while my character was in an i-frame (invincibility frame), so that trumps it.

        Its basically any time something either totally negates, or overpowers some other effect or attack or system.

        Its often associated with a last ditch saving move reserved until its needed, but it does not have to be.