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hornswoggle

[hawrn-swog-uh l]
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verb (used with object), horn·swog·gled, horn·swog·gling. Slang.

to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

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RELATED WORDS

fool, dupe, snow, trick, deceive, bamboozle, swindle

Nearby words

  1. horns and halo effect,
  2. horns of a dilemma, on the,
  3. hornsby,
  4. hornsby, rogers,
  5. hornstone,
  6. horntail,
  7. hornworm,
  8. hornwort,
  9. hornwrack,
  10. horny

Origin of hornswoggle

1815–25 origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hornswoggle

  • The fellow I've been having so much fun with—the Nervy Matt that tried to hornswoggle me with my own photograph.

    Cappy Ricks|Peter B. Kyne
British Dictionary definitions for hornswoggle

hornswoggle

verb

(tr) slang to cheat or trick; bamboozle

Word Origin for hornswoggle

C19: of unknown origin
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 hornswoggle

hornswoggle

v.

"to cheat," 1829, probably a fanciful formation. Related: Hornswoggled; hornswoggling.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper