bunco game
- noun
- /ˈbʌŋkoʊ ɡeɪm/
- US
:
juego de bunco
- He lost his savings in a bunco game run by a clever con artist.
Examples
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The detective warned the community about the bunco game targeting elderly residents.
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Authorities are cracking down on bunco games that trick people into buying fake properties.
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They were caught playing a bunco game in the back room.
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A bunco game often involves tricking unsuspecting victims.
-
Authorities are cracking down on bunco games that trick people into buying fake properties.
-
He lost his savings in a bunco game run by a clever con artist.
-
The detective warned the community about the bunco game targeting elderly residents.
Synonyms
678
8.2
A secret plan to trick or cheat people
107
7.2
A dishonest trick to get someone's money or things
67
6.3
A hidden trick to catch or cheat people often run by police
29
7.7
A dishonest plan to cheat people, especially for money
16
8.0
A dishonest plan to trick people and take their money
6
6.6
A dishonest trick that cheats people out of their money
2
8.9
A dishonest trick that gains someone's trust to steal their money
2
9.9
A plan to cheat people and take their money
1
9.9
A trick that cheats people out of their money, often in gambling or fake investments
1
6.6
A dishonest plan to gain someone's trust and then take their money or things
A trick that cheats people out of money by gambling or selling worthless things
A dishonest scheme that tricks people into giving money, often by selling worthless goods
Antonyms
16
3.0
Honest behavior that treats everyone the same and follows the rules in sport or competition
How Serious
Surface Forms
Morphology
Both constituents directly contribute to the meaning: 'bunco' denotes a fraud or confidence trick and 'game' can mean a deceitful scheme or activity, so 'bunco game' straightforwardly denotes a gambling swindle. This compositional relationship makes the expression predictable for a learner who already knows both words.
Etymology
Bunco game may come from 1800s con men who ran a fake, flashy gambling game called a bunco to distract people while partners cheated them. That's why today bunco game means 'a swindle' — a trick where someone is 'cheated' or sold worthless things.