con game
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of con game
First recorded in 1950–55
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Stefan Pildes promoted SantaCon as an event grounded in charitable giving, but instead of donating the millions of dollars he raised, he ran his own con game," US Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
The only ones to suffer here might be the institutions of higher learning themselves, many of which are running a con game for their own financial benefit.
From Washington Post • Jan. 28, 2022
These two people are recklessly messing with the world as if it's just another con game, in which they'll take their profits before moving on to the next chapter of their spoiled, mindless lives.
From Salon • Mar. 20, 2019
“It’s a con game they’re playing,” he said Tuesday.
From Washington Times • Sep. 26, 2018
If this is done knowingly and with intent to defraud, this is an illegal con game.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
