gambit

Etymology

From Italian gambetto (“act of tripping; gambit”), from Italian gamba (“leg”), from Late Latin gamba.

noun

1. (chess) An opening in chess in which a minor piece or a pawn is sacrificed to gain an advantage.
   Her clever gambit gave her an advantage.
2. Any ploy or stratagem.
   Their promise to lower taxes is clearly an election-year gambit.
   The Red Holocaust is best interpreted in this light as the bitter fruit of an utopian gambit that was socially misengineered into a dystopic nightmare by despots in humanitarian disguise. 2009, Steven Rosefielde, Red Holocaust, page 240
   An opening sequence, featuring a de-aged Ford playing a younger Indy, is a bold and nostalgic gambit, offering a glimpse of what you've missed. 29 June 2023, City AM, London, page 18, column 2
3. A remark intended to open a conversation.

verb

1. (chess, transitive) To sacrifice (a pawn or minor piece) to gain an advantage.