switcheroo
Americannoun
-
switcheroos
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of switcheroo
Explanation
A switcheroo is a surprising change or reversal. If your mom replaced the cookies in a cookie jar with plums, your dad might say, "She pulled the old switcheroo!" Most often, a switcheroo is a joke or trick — a magician might appear to change your ten-dollar bill into a feather, and you could call this a switcheroo. Another kind of switcheroo is simply an abrupt change of direction, like a sudden switcheroo in a movie's plot that leaves you totally confused. Switcheroo was first used, in an informal and joking way, in 1933.
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.
See Examples For:
It’s a wild switcheroo from a couple of weeks ago, when the Clippers sounded full of bravado, spoiling for a fight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
But the sudden and unpublicized switcheroo stunned Wall Street analysts and caused a bit of a mini controversy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
The great “Shōgun” switcheroo also rocked the limited-series race, but with only five possible nominees, the field remains competitive with 14 shows getting mentions from the panelists.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2024
It was a grunge-to-glam twin switcheroo at Dsquared2, the Milan brand founded by Canadian twins Dean and Dan Caten.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
Dad didn’t speak to Mom all morning because of the turkey-tofu switcheroo.
From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass
“Their switcheroos have been totally in sync. This is super important now as they could have three little newly hatched chicks scurrying around the nest in just about a month or so!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 1, 2024
They weren’t flashy, but they had value, and were a quiet reminder — like Mr. Owens’ fog and Mr. Simons’ switcheroos — of how distorted our world has become.
From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2021
Some networks made some wise switcheroos early on — HBO moved its Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant drama “The Undoing” from a spring premiere date to Oct.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 9, 2020
Their trademark deceptions and switcheroos – where a trusted confidante may at any moment peel off her latex mask to reveal a foe underneath – depict a world in flux.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 19, 2018
Then, to our eternal embarrassment, Mom pulled one of her Mom switcheroos.
From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
