when the chips are down

Meaning: (idiomatic)When thepressureis on; when thesituationisurgentorcritical.He wasn't a verytalentedmusicianbut,when the chips were down, he playedwell.When the chips are down, you need to make toughdecisions.1950June 26, Alex H. Washburn, “Korea — Sound of War”, inHope Star‎[1], volume51, number214, Hope, Ark.,page 1, column 1:The armed forces of North Korea, which borders on and is allied with Russian Manchuria, marched into the U. S.-sponsored South Korea Republic over the week-end — andthe chips are downfor American prestige throughout the Far East.1968December 8,Henry Cosby,Sylvia Moy,Stevie Wonder, “I’d Be a Fool Right Now”, inFor Once in My Life, performed byStevie Wonder,Tamla Records:They say thatwhen the chips are down, girlYour love won't stay so long, my friendBut they don't know that your sweet loving, babeHas been around through thick and thin2023December 6, Sam Lansky, “Person of Year 2023 : Taylor Swift”, inTime‎[2]:“Lucian and Monte basically said to me, ‘Whatever you turn in, we will be proud to put out. We give you 100% creative freedom and trust.’” It was exactly what she needed to hear mostwhen the chips were down.

Examples:

EN: A man thinks he's got men behind him, but when the chips are down... Aw...
ES: Crees que tienes amigos... pero cuando la situación se pone fea...
ES: Crees que tienes amigos... pero cuando la situación se pone fea...
EN: It's going to be interesting to see how he acts when the chips are down.
ES: Será interesante verlo con las cosas en contra.
EN: Which side are you on when the chips are down?
ES: ¿De qué lado estás cuando las cosas van mal?
EN: But your kind of bravery comes 10 cents a dozen... and isn't worth a hoot more when the chips are down.
ES: Pero su clase de valentía es del montón... y no vale nada cuando realmente importa.
EN: So you're hipped on the side till you want freedom and peace for your people, but when the chips are down you won't fight for it.
ES: Dice que quiere paz y libertad para su pueblo... pero cuando la situación se complica no quiere luchar.
EN: The truth is, when the chips are down, man is the master of his own fate. The captain of his destiny.
ES: Pase lo que pase, siempre será el hombre inteligente quien manda en su destino.
EN: Well, I want a girl who's sincere, real-- someone who-- who'd stick by me when the chips are down-- one who wants me only for what I am, and not for what I have.
ES: Quero una chica que sea sincera. Auténtica. Alguien que esté a mi lado cuando las cosas vayan mal.
EN: You all start out eager beaver, but when the chips are down... when the pressure comes in, you fade.
ES: Todos empiezan con muchas ganas, pero a la hora de la verdad... cuando sienten la presión, todos desaparecen.
EN: No Bruckner, when the chips are down.
ES: En el fondo, todos son como Bruckner.
EN: Recognizing Glenn's morale-boosting feat that proved three men will have their say in space when the chips are down.
ES: La hazaña realizada por Glenn demostró que 3 hombres pueden conquistar el espacio si así se decide.
EN: I didn't mind standing outside the gate, shooting a load of crap about wages, but when the chips are down and the lads are having a go, I'm right in with them.
ES: No me interesaba pararme afuera, gritando tonterías sobre los salarios, pero cuando las papas queman y los chicos están en acción, estoy con ellos.
EN: If, when the chips are down, the world's most powerful nation, the United States of America, acts like a pitiful, helpless giant, the forces of totalitarianism and anarchy will threaten free nations and free institutions
ES: Si en momentos críticos, la nación más poderosa del mundo, los Estados Unidos de América, actúa como un lamentable gigante impotente, las fuerzas del totalitarismo y la anarquía amenazarán a las naciones y las instituciones libres en todo el mundo...
EN: We shall see when the chips are down.
ES: Veremos lo que pasa... el día de la carrera.
EN: Minister, when the chips are down, and the balloons are up and the lights go out...
ES: ¡A la hora de la verdad, se alza el telón y las luces se apagan!
EN: Do you mean that when the chips are down, you're on my side, not Humphrey's?
ES: ¿Quiere decir que cuando las cosas van mal, está de mi parte, no de la de Humphrey?

Note: the examples for non latin scripts have a high likelihood of mistakes, we do not own any of this data and it is sourced from Wiktionary, the NLLB database and Opensubtitles. Please help us improve this by contributing correct examples. We will be working to fix this issue over time however it is a bigger issue due to the the difficulties in dealing with non latin scripts and grammatical structures(non-romantic/european languages have lower resources as well ).