bunko

or bun·co

[ buhng-koh ]

/ ˈbʌŋ koʊ /

Informal.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bunko ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural bun·kos.

a swindle in which a person is cheated at gambling, persuaded to buy a nonexistent, unsalable, or worthless object, or otherwise victimized.

any misrepresentation.

verb (used with object), bun·koed, bun·ko·ing.

to victimize by a bunko.

Nearby words

bunker, archie, bunkerage, bunkhouse, bunkie, bunkmate, bunko, bunko steerer, bunkroom, bunkum, bunn, bunny

Origin of bunko

1880–85; shortened form of bunkum; cf. -o

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bunko

He tries to tell me that this minin' business is all a bunko game, and that there's a paper out for the boss.
Torchy|Sewell Ford
He cited the operations of bunko swindlers, gamblers and bandits and declared that the city was "wide open."
Spring Street|James H. Richardson
Say, you give me back my eighteen dollars, or I'll——You'll try your bunko game on me, will you?
Torchy|Sewell Ford
There were no burglaries, gambling, picking of pockets, bunko swindling or handbook betting.
Spring Street|James H. Richardson

Pa says he thinks I was cut out for a bunko steerer, and I may look for that kind of a job.
Peck's Bad Boy and His Pa|George W. Peck

British Dictionary definitions for bunko

bunko

/ (ˈbʌŋkəʊ) /

noun, verb

a variant spelling of bunco

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

bunko

or bun·co

noun, plural bun·kos.

verb (used with object), bun·koed, bun·ko·ing.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of bunko

Examples from the Web for bunko

British Dictionary definitions for bunko

bunko

noun, verb