tinhorn

[ tin-hawrn ]

/ ˈtɪnˌhɔrn /

Slang.

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noun

someone, especially a gambler, who pretends to be important but actually has little money, influence, or skill.

adjective

cheap and insignificant; small-time: a tinhorn racket.

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Origin of tinhorn

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; tin + horn

Words nearby tinhorn

Tingley, Ting Ling, tingly, tin god, tin hat, tinhorn, Tinia, Tinian, tinker, tinkerman, tinker's cuss

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tinhorn in a sentence

That makes them mad and the tinhorn bunch keep stirring up trouble.
Corporal Cameron|Ralph Connor
But we don't get many men with your background—cop, tinhorn, fighter—who have brains enough for our work.
Police Your Planet|Lester del Rey
When Tinhorn dealt him another jack he bought more chips and backed his pair, for Tinhorn, as yet, had none in sight.
'Me-Smith'|Caroline Lockhart
The next turn showed up a queen for Tinhorn and a three-spot for Smith.
'Me-Smith'|Caroline Lockhart

But there was one person his story did involve, and that was Spiker, the tinhorn, tenderfoot sport of Noches.
Mavericks|William MacLeod Raine

British Dictionary definitions for tinhorn

tinhorn

/ (ˈtɪnˌhɔːn) US slang /

noun

a cheap pretentious person, esp a gambler with extravagant claims

adjective

cheap and showy

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