Dictionary.com
definitions

Never give a sucker an even break

Don't hesitate to take advantage of a fool.

RELATED CONTENT

Weird Obsessions You Never Knew Had A NameRead more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE
When To Use A vs. AnThere are all sorts of grammar rules out there. But, one of the most basic is determining when you should use the very first letter of the alphabet. Do you know when to use a vs. when you should use an?
READ MORE

Note

This saying served as the title for one of the films of the comedian W. C. Fields.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with never give a sucker an even break

never give a sucker an even break

Don't allow a person who's easily duped a fair chance, as in He's always trying to give out expired coupons for his store, firmly believing in never giving a sucker an even break. Probably a direct quotation, it has been attributed to showman P. T. Barnum (responsible for the oft-quoted “There's a sucker born every minute”); and comedian W. C. Fields (who popularized it in one of his films); and theater manager Edward Francis Albee, the most probable of the three. [Slang; early 1900s]

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