How do you say “Hedge your bets” in Spanish?
The closest natural Spanish equivalent is no jugárselo todo a una carta, which literally means “not to stake everything on one card”. English speakers use hedge your bets to mean to reduce the risk of failure by keeping more than one option available. A useful Spanish expression for avoiding dependence on one outcome. The negative is essential to this meaning. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural Spanish
no jugárselo todo a una carta
/no xuˈɣaɾselo ˈtoðo a una ˈkaɾta/
- Literal meaning
- “not to stake everything on one card”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
94 out of 100
What a native Spanish speaker would actually say
“Jugárselo todo a una carta” means taking the opposite approach: putting everything on one chance. Add “no” to express the caution in hedging your bets.
It works for education, work or plans that could fall through. No actual card game is needed.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone5 out of 5
- Context5 out of 5
- Literal similarity4 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
In context
English
I’m hedging my bets by applying to three different courses.
Spanish
No me lo juego todo a una carta: solicito plaza en tres cursos distintos.
English
We hedged our bets and booked an indoor room as well as the garden.
Spanish
No nos lo jugamos todo a una carta y reservamos una sala además del jardín.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-11-13