EN

Synonyms for trick

  • noun
  • verb

Most common

magic illusion ploy legerdemain joke prank knack artifice

Synonyms by meaning

Noun

1. Legerdemain — A single element of a magician's (or any variety entertainer's) act; a magic trick

legerdemain, ploy, illusion, magic, deception, sleight-of-hand, ruse, magic trick, sleight, stratagem, subterfuge, deceit, gambit, hocus-pocus, maneuver US, manoeuvre UK, mask, conjuring trick, finesse, contrivance, dodge, sham, feint

2. Prank

prank, caper, put-on informal, joke, antic, dido, jape

3. Jockey — A customer or client of a prostitute

jockey UK, john US, whoremonger vulgar UK IE

Other

knack, artifice, practice US, practise UK, feat, habit, rip-off, peculiarity, flim-flam, trait, shift dated, fast one slang

Verb

1. Fool — to fool; to cause to believe something untrue; to deceive

fool, deceive, cheat, dupe, hood-wink, get informal, catch, have informal, bamboozle informal, swindle, con informal, circumvent, chance, hoax, bilk, delude, mark, defraud, diddle, juggle, overreach, victimize, victimise UK

2. Play tricks

play tricks, fox, fob dated

Other

mod

Definitions

  1. n. 1

    A single element of a magician's (or any variety entertainer's) act; a magic trick.

    And for my next trick, I will pull a wombat out of a duffel bag.

  2. n. 2

    A customer or client of a prostitute.

    As the businessman rounded the corner, she thought, "Here comes another trick."

  3. v. 1

    To fool; to cause to believe something untrue; to deceive.

    You tried to trick me when you said that house was underpriced.

  4. v. 2

    To draw (as contrasted with to blazon, which is to describe in words).

Related words

Word family
trickish tricksical tricksy tricky
Phrases
trick out trick up confidence trick conjuring trick magic trick do the trick turn a trick three-card trick

Forms

Plural
tricks → legerdemains, ploys, illusions, magics…
Past participle
tricked
e.g. tricked → fooled, deceived, cheated, duped…

Choose the right word

or Trick?

A trick is often low, injurious, and malicious; we say a mean trick; the word is sometimes used playfully with less than its full meaning.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

  • magic He amused the children by showing them some magic.
  • illusion This created an illusion that was hard to explain.
  • ploy Tom's ploy almost succeeded.
  • legerdemain Such changes are nothing more than the artist's legerdemain.
  • joke We are bored with the joke of professorial custom.
  • prank Sami took it so far that his prank became a crime.

Popularity over time

Word1850 → 2019Trend
trickrising
magicrising
illusionrising
ployrising
legerdemainfalling
jokerising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

3 letters
get1, fox1, con1, mod1, fob1
4 letters
have1, john1, mark1, joke1, mask1, fool1, feat1, sham1, hoax1, ploy1, ruse1, dupe1, dido2, bilk1
5 letters
catch1, magic2, shift1, habit2, cheat1, dodge1, prank1, trait1, knack1, caper2, feint1, antic2
6 letters
chance1, jockey2, deceit2, gambit2, juggle2, delude2, diddle2
7 letters
deceive2, finesse2, defraud2, sleight1, swindle2
8 letters
practice2, illusion3, maneuver3, practise2, artifice3
9 letters
deception3, manoeuvre, overreach3, stratagem3, bamboozle, victimize3, victimise
10 letters
circumvent3, subterfuge3
11 letters
peculiarity6, contrivance3, legerdemain4, whoremonger

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (dido2 = 2 syllables).

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