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fob

2
[fob]
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fob ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), fobbed, fob·bing.

Archaic. to cheat; deceive.

Verb Phrases

fob off,
  1. to cheat someone by substituting something spurious or inferior; palm off (often followed by on): He tried to fob off an inferior brand on us.
  2. to put (someone) off by deception or trickery: She fobbed us off with false promises.

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RELATED WORDS

cheat, deceive, foist, misinform, mislead, misrepresent, rook, scam, stall, swindle, trick, misguide, offload

Nearby words

  1. foamed metal,
  2. foamed plastic,
  3. foamflower,
  4. foamy,
  5. foamy virus,
  6. fob off,
  7. fobs,
  8. foc,
  9. focaccia,
  10. focal

Origin of fob

2
1350–1400; Middle English fobben; cognate with German foppen to delude; cf. fob1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for fob off

fob off

verb (tr, adverb)

to appease or trick (a person) with lies or excuses
to dispose of (goods) by trickery

fob

1

noun

a chain or ribbon by which a pocket watch is attached to a waistcoat
any ornament hung on such a chain
a small pocket in a man's waistcoat, for holding a watch
a metal or plastic tab on a key ring

Word Origin for fob

C17: probably of Germanic origin; compare German dialect Fuppe pocket

fob

2

verb fobs, fobbing or fobbed

an archaic word for cheat

Word Origin for fob

C15: probably from German foppen to trick

fob

3

noun

NZ slang a Pacific Islander who has newly arrived in New Zealand

Word Origin for fob

C20: from f (resh) o (ff) (the) b (oat)
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
Word Origin and History for fob off
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with fob off

fob off

1

Sell or dispose of goods by fraud or deception, as in They tried to fob off the zircon as a diamond. [c. 1600]

2

Put off or appease by deceitful means, as in We needed her help but were fobbed off by promises. [c. 1600]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.