jig up

C1 informal inseparable intransitive

In simple words

the trick is finished and people know the truth now

Literal meaning: The dance or game has ended.

Meanings

1 C1 idiomatic informal

uncommon

Used to say that someone's dishonest plan or secret activity has been discovered and can no longer continue.

"When the auditor asked for the missing receipts, we knew the jig was up."

"The jig is up."
— The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Grammar: inseparable

Usage notes

Almost always appears as the fixed idiom 'the jig is up.' Learners should treat it as a set phrase rather than a productive phrasal verb.

the jig is up fraud secret scheme deception

Base

jig up

I/you/we/they

3rd person

jigs up

he/she/it

Past simple

jiged up

yesterday

Past participle

jiged up

have + pp

-ing form

jiging up

continuous

Try:

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the game is up it's over the secret is out the fraud has been exposed

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