confidence game

American  

noun

1. any swindle in which the swindler, after gaining the confidence of the victim, robs the victim by cheating at a gambling game, appropriating funds entrusted for investment, or the like.

---

confidence game Idioms  

1. Also, confidence trick; con game. A swindle in which the victim is defrauded after his or her trust has been won. For example, The police warned of a confidence game in which people were asked to turn over valuables for a so-called appraisal, or The typical confidence trick is easy to spot if you know what to look for, or I almost let myself be taken in by her con game—she seemed so sincere. These terms, which use confidence in the sense of “trust,” date from the mid-1800s. They also gave rise to confidence man (or con man) for the swindler.

---

Etymology

Origin of confidence game

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

Example Sentences

People purchase them because they think the value will appreciate “so obviously the confidence game will only work as long as people keep buying.”

From Reuters

It’s a confidence game, and you will lose money.

From Seattle Times

But if the banking business is ultimately a confidence game, the game ended quickly.

From New York Times

The British psychological thriller follows the emboldened woman down the rabbit hole of false identities and confidence games.

From Seattle Times

“This was really an ageless, classic confidence game that has played out over modern social media,” Assistant U.S.

From Washington Post