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• con
  con

  adverb

  against a proposition, opinion, etc..
• con-
  con-

  variant of com- before a consonant (exceptb, h, l, p, r ) and, by assimilation, before n: convene; condone; connection.
• con.
  con.

  abbreviation

  concerto.
• Con.
  Con.

  abbreviation

  Conformist.

con

¹ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

adverb

1. against a proposition, opinion, etc..

   arguments pro and con.

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noun

1. the argument, position, arguer, or voter against something.

   The pros of the library project are obvious, but we have to consider the cons as well.

con ² American  

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

1. to swindle; trick.

   That crook conned me out of all my savings.

2. to persuade by deception, cajolery, etc..

   Don't worry, I can always con my dad into letting me use his car.

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noun

1. a confidence game or swindle.

   By the time my uncle realized she was playing a con on him, she had already left town with his rare coin collection.

2. a lie, exaggeration, or glib self-serving talk.

   He had a dozen different cons for getting out of paying traffic tickets.

adjective

1. relating to or involving abuse of confidence.

   a slick con man;

   a con trick.

con ³ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

noun

Slang.

1. a convict.

   Her brother's a con up in Elmira.

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con ⁴ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

noun

Informal.

1. a convention, especially one for fans of a particular type of popular culture.

   sci-fi, gaming, and anime cons.

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con ⁵ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

1. to learn; study; peruse or examine carefully.

   She's been conning her grandfather's medical diaries for months.

2. to commit to memory.

   I have conned the state capitals in alphabetical order, from Albany to Trenton.

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con ⁶ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

Or conn

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

1. to direct the steering of (a ship).

   conning the freighter into port.

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noun

1. the station of the person who cons.

   You will assume the con, ensign.

2. the act of conning.

   Storms from the northeast made for a difficult con.

con ⁷ American  

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

British Dialect.

conned, conning

1. to strike, hit, or rap (something or someone).

   We think he was conned with a cricket bat.

2. to hammer (a nail or peg).

   Who knew conning tacks into the new carpet would take so long?

3. to beat or thrash (a person) with the hands or a weapon.

   He conned the poor guy in the pub for no apparent reason.

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con- ⁸ American  

1. variant of com- before a consonant (exceptb, h, l, p, r ) and, by assimilation, before n: convene; condone; connection.

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con. ⁹ American  

abbreviation

1. concerto.

2. conclusion.

3. connection.

4. consolidated.

5. consul.

6. continued.

7. against.

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Con. ¹⁰ American  

abbreviation

1. Conformist.

2. Consul.

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con ¹ British  

/ kɒn /

noun

1. 1. short for confidence trick

   2. ( as modifier )

      con man

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verb

1. (tr) to swindle or defraud

con ² British  

/ kɒn /

noun

1. an argument or vote against a proposal, motion, etc

2. a person who argues or votes against a proposal, motion, etc

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con ³ British  

/ kɒn /

verb

1. (tr) to direct the steering of (a vessel)

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noun

1. the place where a person who cons a vessel is stationed

Con. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. Conservative

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con ⁵ British  

/ kɒn /

noun

1. slang short for convict

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con ⁶ British  

/ kɒn /

verb

1. archaic (tr) to study attentively or learn (esp in the phrase con by rote )

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con ⁷ British  

/ kɒn /

preposition

1. music with

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con- ⁸ British  

prefix

1. a variant of com-

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Etymology

Origin of con¹

First recorded in 1575–85; short for Latin contrā “in opposition, against”

Origin of con²

An Americanism first recorded in 1895–1900; by shortening of confidence

Origin of con³

First recorded in 1715–25; by shortening

Origin of con⁴

First recorded in 1940–45; by shortening

Origin of con⁵

First recorded before 1000; Middle English cunnen, Old English cunnan, variant of can ¹ in sense “become acquainted with, learn to know”

Origin of con⁶

First recorded in 1350–1400; earlier cond, apocopated variant of Middle English condie, condue, from Middle French cond(u)ire, from Latin condūcere “to conduct”

Origin of con⁷

First recorded in 1890–95; perhaps akin to French cognée “hatchet,” cogner “to knock in, drive (a nail) home”

Origin of con-⁸

From Latin

Origin of con.⁹

From the Latin word contrā

Explanation

A con, or confidence game, is a swindle — when you take advantage of someone's trust. If you con someone out of their life savings, you might wind up a con — as in convict. The word con has many meanings, none of them good. An argument has pros and cons, and the cons are always the downside. An ex-con is someone who spent time in jail as a convict, and a con artist is someone who scams people out of their money.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

con con- con. Con. conned conning

She said the sector had many decent businesses which were "undermined by far too many cowboys, crooks and con artists".

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

And it would be easy to conclude that he’s running a kind of big con.

From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026

Don’t get lured into a clever, obscure get-rich-quick scheme sold to you by a plausible-sounding con artist.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

“I know a con man when I see one,” says Mr. Rogers, who was a special agent with the FBI from 1989 through 1994.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

“And Mami,” I said as I sipped my afternoon café con leche, “Miss Jiménez said the experts will give us free food and toothbrushes and things...and we can get breakfast every day except Sunday...”

From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago

But you don’t want any con- tentious relationships in play before the green flag drops.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2016

“This is no small task, but the con- sequences for food and ecosystem security could not be bigger.”

From Time ● Feb. 4, 2016

It begins quietly shipping information back and forth over the available capacity of its con- nection to the .

From Scientific American ● Jun. 20, 2013

She has been vilified in news reports around the world and called a “professional con- artist,” Thompson wrote in the filing.

From BusinessWeek ● Aug. 8, 2011

Curly finally came up with something positive to con- tribute.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

"It's not a con. It's an attempt to set up a new distinction in the world of academia - an attempt that failed," he is reported as saying.

From BBC ● May 6, 2026

“I don’t really care what happens to him personally. I’m not pro, I’m not con. I just think some people might want the shirt.”

From Washington Post ● Apr. 5, 2023

“This was all the long con. We’ve been wearing ’em just to get you to look stupid.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 14, 2020

We went about another 500 yards and the Navigator Lieutenant, Rob Chadwick, said: “this is the navigator. I have the con. All engines back full.”

From MSNBC ● Oct. 16, 2019

“It’s pro and con. So you should go first.”

From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia

“It’s Comic Con. They’re always fun,” said Reid, also known for her roles in “American Pie” and “The Big Lebowski.”

From Seattle Times ● May 13, 2016

“Word spread pretty quickly about Amazing Hawaii Con. That took everyone by storm.”

From Washington Times ● Jul. 25, 2015

Popping on a black headband with a big glittery bow on it, she said, “This is Little Comic Con. I’m guessing people dress up in costumes? Go all out?”

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon

“It’s okay, Con. You should go with Mom. Hold her hand in the parking lot, and look both ways when you’re going across the crosswalks, okay?”

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

“That’s great, Con. Now let me go. Please.”

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

How a master of deception conned investors out of $50 million — in his own words.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026

"We've both been conned, useful idiots, which is not a very nice way to put it, but we've been used," says Elma.

From BBC ● May 22, 2026

And so the question is whether there is really much countries can do to turn the tables on the scammers and prevent many more people like Kirsty being conned out of their savings?

From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026

The second, Joan, a middle-aged heiress in Florida, was conned by Ken into believing that he was Jewish and a canny businessman.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026

It’s played barefoot by idiots like Marv, who’s conned me into playing the last few years.

From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak

A British woman who was charged with fraud after allegedly conning multiple people, including her son, to fund her lavish lifestyle will face further charges in Singapore.

From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026

How do I set it up to help protect his assets from possibly someone who is conning him?

From MarketWatch ● Dec. 1, 2025

Three Southern California men are accused of conning over 100 victims — most of them elderly — into transferring funds over fraudulent security concerns or by way of falsified real estate sales.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2025

Yet it was this exact determination—to build power in an inherently flawed system—that turned him into the conning strategist he became.

From Slate ● Dec. 12, 2024

It also had two watertight hatches for entering and leaving the vessel, one at the front and another at the rear, and two short conning towers equipped with small portholes.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Related Words

• bamboozle
• bilk
• dupe
• hoodwink
• swindle
• wheedle