# come up with snake eyes

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/come-up-with-snake-eyes
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To fail to come up with anything; to get nowhere.

## Examples

- I searched everywhere for my keys but came up with snake eyes.
- He checks the mailbox every day but always comes up with snake eyes.
- She looks for a solution in the manual and comes up with snake eyes.
- We spent all afternoon brainstorming new marketing ideas, but we came up with snake eyes.
- The police interviewed every witness at the scene, but they came up with snake eyes regarding the suspect's identity.
- I tried to find a cheap flight for the holiday weekend, but every travel website came up with snake eyes.
- Despite an exhaustive investigation into the company's financial records, the auditors came up with snake eyes regarding the missing funds.

## Origin

From come up with + snake eyes, a term denoting a pair of dice showing a value of one on each face. The name derives from the visual resemblance of the two single pips to the eyes of a serpent. In many dice games, such as craps, this roll constitutes an immediate loss for the player, a failure which the idiom preserves.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.