Dictionary
Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.
show one's true stripes en · VERB
Pronunciation
Meanings
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(idiomatic) To reveal one's real beliefs, sentiments, or character, especially through one's behavior.
"My fear is that Bill Ford is showing his true stripes as just another short-sighted auto executive with no interest in the environment."
2005 July 12, Danny Hakim, “With Sierra Club's Help, Ford Pushes a New Hybrid”, in New York Times, retrieved 21 Mar 2013:“Now they're showing their true stripes,” Iimmy Fioretos said. “The Turks wanted to invade all along. That malarkey about ‘protecting the Constitution’ was just a pretext.”
2002, Jeffrey Eugenides, Middlesex (2011 reprint), p. 363 (Google preview)Fidel Castro showed his true stripes again—as if they weren't indelible enough already—by letting his MiGs shoot down two of three unarmed Cuban-exile planes off Havana's coast on Saturday.
1996 February 26, “Editorial" Against Change in Cuba”, in Miami Herald, retrieved 21 Mar 2013, page 14A:
Forms
Synonyms
show one's true colors