roll the dice

Meaning

Literally, to throw small cubes with dots on them in a board game. Figuratively, it means to take a risk or make a decision where the outcome is uncertain and depends on luck.

Examples

• It's your turn to roll the dice and see how many spaces you can move.

  It's your turn to roll the dice and see how many spaces you can move.

• Starting a new business is always a gamble, but sometimes you just have to roll the dice.

  Starting a new business is always a gamble, but sometimes you just have to roll the dice.

• I didn't know if the job was right for me, but I decided to roll the dice and apply anyway.

  I didn't know if the job was right for me, but I decided to roll the dice and apply anyway.

• If you don't roll the dice, you'll never know if you could have succeeded.

  If you don't roll the dice, you'll never know if you could have succeeded.

• Before you roll the dice on a cheap used car, make sure a mechanic inspects it.

  Before you roll the dice on a cheap used car, make sure a mechanic inspects it.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ It's your turn to throw the die.

  ✓ It's your turn to roll the dice.

  While grammatically correct for a single die, 'roll the dice' is the standard idiomatic expression used in both games and figurative contexts.

• ✗ I decided to roll the dice on buying that stock.

  ✓ I decided to take a calculated risk on buying that stock.

  'Roll the dice' has a casual, gambling connotation and is usually avoided in formal business or academic writing.

Related Expressions

Practice

• In this board game, you must ___ to determine who goes first.

  💡 Throw the small numbered cubes.

  Show answer

  roll the dice

• Moving to a new country without a job offer is a big risk, but she wanted to ___.

  💡 Take a chance on an unpredictable situation.

  Show answer

  roll the dice