Other forms: trumps
A trump is the suit chosen to beat all the others in a round. Hearts are trumps, play a trump, a trump card.
The lowest one beats the highest card of any other suit, which is the whole idea. A trump card figuratively is a decisive advantage held back. The word is probably a worn-down triumph, and it named an old card game before it named the suit.
1nountrumpThe suit chosen to beat all others in a round.
“She played a trump and won the last trick of the game.”
trump is a card.
Probably an altered form of triumph, which was the name of an old card game before it named the suit.
Old French
triumphe
French
triomphe — triumph
English, today
trump
Possibly from French triomphe (“triumph”) or Old French triumphe. If so, it is a a doublet of triumph and thriambus. Compare German Trumpf.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA