Gambit
/ˈɡæm.bɪt/noun
A calculated opening move or strategy, especially in chess or negotiation.
Did you know?The word entered English through chess, but its deeper ancestry is tied to a term for a leg or step, so a gambit is, at its root, a carefully placed move.
Etymological Timeline
Greek
Gk
κάμπτω (kámpō)
“to bend, stoop, or curve”
Medieval Italian
It
gambetto
“a tripping move in wrestling or fencing, literally a move involving the leg”
16th Century
It
gambetto
“a chess opening move used to gain advantage by sacrifice”
16th Century
French
gambit
“a chess opening strategy or opening maneuver”
17th Century
English
gambit
“an opening chess move; later, any opening strategy or ploy”