: in a difficult situation : when things are not good True friends will stand by you when the chips are down.

When the chips are down come from?

When the chips are down is an idiom which comes from these gambling chips, such as used in poker. In gambling, the time when the chips are down is when the bet has been placed. Just as this is a crucial moment in gambling when you may well lose your money, the expression speaks of a crucial time in a person’s life.

What does like it or lump it?

informal. : to accept or allow something unpleasant or unwanted —usually used in the phrase like it or lump it Like it or lump it, the new law goes into effect today.