up the ante meaning: Increase stakes or expectations significantly

up the ante meaning  I've seen several posts tagged as upping the ante but have yet to find what they have in common or even a definition What is the upping 11 Example Sentences of Up the ante with Meaning

The new law ups the ante on people who cheat on their taxes The film ups the ante on special effects Did everyone at the table ▸ noun: A price or cost, as in up the ante ▸ noun: In poker and other games, the contribution made by all players to the pot before dealing the cards

Those are poker term, the ante is an obligatory bet for each hand that will usually increase over time during a tournament (some have it at noun Each player's stake, which is put into the pool before the game begins verb To put up