con

/kɑn/

/kɒn/

Other forms: cons

A con, or confidence game, is a swindle — when you take advantage of someone's trust. If you con someone out of their life savings, you might wind up a con — as in convict.

The word con has many meanings, none of them good. An argument has pros and cons, and the cons are always the downside. An ex-con is someone who spent time in jail as a convict, and a con artist is someone who scams people out of their money.

Definitions of con

1. noun

   an argument opposed to a proposal
   antonyms:

   pro

   an argument in favor of a proposal

   type of:

   argument, statement

   a fact or assertion offered as evidence that something is true
2. adverb

   in opposition to a proposition, opinion, etc.
   “much was written pro and con”

   antonyms:

   pro

   in favor of a proposition, opinion, etc.
3. noun

   (offensive) a swindle in which you cheat at gambling or persuade a person to buy worthless property
   synonyms: bunco, bunco game, bunko, bunko game, con game, confidence game, confidence trick, flimflam, hustle, sting

   types:

   sting operation

   a complicated confidence game planned and executed with great care (especially an operation implemented by undercover agents to apprehend criminals)

   type of:

   cheat, rig, swindle

   the act of swindling by some fraudulent scheme
4. verb

   (offensive) deprive of by deceit
   synonyms: bunco, defraud, diddle, gip, goldbrick, hornswoggle, mulct, nobble, rook, scam, short-change, shortchange, swindle, victimize

   types:

   short, short-change, shortchange

   cheat out of by giving back less money than is due to someone who has overpaid

   type of:

   cheat, chisel, rip off

   deprive somebody of something by deceit
5. verb

   commit to memory; learn by heart
   synonyms: learn, memorise, memorize

   types:

   alternate, understudy

   be an understudy or alternate for a role

   type of:

   hit the books, study

   learn by reading books
6. noun

   a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
   synonyms: convict, inmate, yard bird, yardbird

   types:

   lifer

   a prisoner serving a term of life imprisonment

   trusty

   a convict who is considered trustworthy and granted special privileges

   type of:

   captive, prisoner

   a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war