: something (such as a ruse) used deceptively to gain another's confidence
He knew too much about con to fall for that one …—
Herbert Gold
Herbert Gold
also
: a confidence game : swindle
conned; conning
1
: swindle
accused of conning retirees out of their savings
2
: manipulate sense 2b
He conned his way into the job.
plural cons
informal
: convention sense 2b
a comic book con
Now, such gatherings as the Further Confusion convention in San Jose, California, and Anthrocon in Philadelphia, attract more than 1,000 furry hobbyists apiece. (The Midwest FurFest is a smaller "con," with about 400 attending.)—George Gurley
George Gurley1
: an argument or evidence in opposition
2
: the negative position or one holding it
an appraisal of the pros and cons
: on the negative side : in opposition
so much has been written pro and con
: confidence
a con artist
a con game
conned; conning
1
: to commit to memory
conned the poem
2
: to study or examine closely
Clare regarded her attentively, conned the characters of her face as if they had been hieroglyphics.—Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy
slang
: a destructive disease of the lungs
especially
: tuberculosis
1
consolidated
2
[Latin conjunx]
consort
3
consul
4
continued
Synonyms
Noun (1)
Verb (1)
- beat
- bilk
- bleed
- cheat
- chisel
- chouse
- cozen
- defraud
- diddle
- do
- do in
- euchre
- fiddle
- fleece
- flimflam
- gaff
- hose [slang]
- hustle
- mulct
- nobble [British slang]
- pluck
- ream
- rip off
- rook
- screw
- shake down
- short
- shortchange
- skin
- skunk
- squeeze
- stick
- stiff
- sting
- sucker
- swindle
- thimblerig
- victimize
Noun (2)
Noun (5)
Examples of con in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebKalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 1 Mar. 2024
By Saturday afternoon, the experience had been canceled and local police confirmed to NBC News that they were called to the scene after attendees who felt conned began demanding refunds.
—Angela Yang, NBC News, 28 Feb. 2024
As clutches laid by those snakes failed to contain any crimson hatchlings, vexed breeders agreed that they’d been conned.
—Rebecca Giggs, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Darwall’s report convincingly demonstrates how Britain was conned into net zero by deceptive and illusory promises of cheap renewable power.
—Andrew Puzder, National Review, 5 Feb. 2024
The fact that Norma’s fallen into a coma, and can’t be charmed (or conned) by Maxine any further, doesn’t help either.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 20 Mar. 2024
Related Articles Redwood City widow conned out of nearly $2 million, bank accused of helping scammers
The first 10 years of legal marijuana in Colorado were a wild ride.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2024
In the case that sent him to prison in November, Wooton conned a Clearwater man into giving him $10,000 in 2019 for the purchase of a motorhome that didn’t exist.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 14 Feb. 2024
Their bait-and-switch scam conned users with fake properties in major cities, including Los Angeles and Denver.
—Jenna Anderson, Sunset Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024
Victoria Song, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
Weigh the pros and cons as the moon and Mars clash.
—USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2024
What This Means for You Some people can go their whole lives without experiencing any kind of biomechanical issue as a result of their footwear choices, even running long distances — and studies on barefoot running, in particular, are mixed as to the pros and cons.
—Laura Lancaster, Outdoor Life, 11 Apr. 2024
Get the recipe > Caldo de Cabeza de Pescado con Chochoyotes (Fish Head Soup with Masa Dumplings)
Obed Vallejo
Chef, Maíz de la Vida, Nashville, Tennessee
Born in Yucatán, chef Obed Vallejo moved to Florida as a kid.
—Shane Mitchell, Saveur, 28 Mar. 2024
Verdict: New Biz Player Is a Decent Value, But Needs Refinement
MSI’s new business laptop line comes with slightly fewer pros than cons on the final tally.
—PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024
The pros and cons of a possible de facto TikTok ban.
—Galen Druke, ABC News, 21 Mar. 2024
Read on to learn more about each website and the pros and cons of using them.
—Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2024
Anthony Vaccarello’s latest show for Saint Laurent divided opinions, with the pros and cons often falling along gender lines.
—Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2024
Byrachyl Jones, Fortune, 6 Sep. 2023
The thing to eat is at Vitek's and called the Gut Pack: Barbecue beans, cheese and con chips with sausage and peppers.
—Scott Springer, The Enquirer, 2 July 2023
But when the man Maizy brings back is more con than corn, Lulu and the entire town must learn that sometimes help comes from unlikely corny places.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 3 May 2023
While travelling on a cruise ship, Hopsie falls for a con woman named Jean Harrington (Barbara Stanwyck).
—Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2023
Torn between her feelings for Paxton and Ben, Devi creates a pro-con list with Fab and Eleanor.
—Leah Campano, Seventeen, 11 Aug. 2022
And while the old Miranda would have faced her mid-life crisis by whipping a legal pad out of her normcore briefcase and making a pro-con list, this Miranda’s response is a lot more Carrie.
—Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 21 Jan. 2022
Indeed, Harmon's aim for her story was not to wade through the pro/con GMO arguments, but to open a new window onto a complicated subject.
—Keith Kloor, Discover Magazine, 1 Aug. 2013
Verb
Although Pathological: The Lies of Joran van der Sloot examines a murder’s successful efforts to con the media, Cassel says his documentary doesn’t sympathize with him, and instead exposes van der Sloot’s corrupt behavior, while paying tribute to the victim’s families.
—Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 1 Mar. 2024
By Saturday afternoon, the experience had been canceled and local police confirmed to NBC News that they were called to the scene after attendees who felt conned began demanding refunds.
—Angela Yang, NBC News, 28 Feb. 2024
As clutches laid by those snakes failed to contain any crimson hatchlings, vexed breeders agreed that they’d been conned.
—Rebecca Giggs, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Darwall’s report convincingly demonstrates how Britain was conned into net zero by deceptive and illusory promises of cheap renewable power.
—Andrew Puzder, National Review, 5 Feb. 2024
The fact that Norma’s fallen into a coma, and can’t be charmed (or conned) by Maxine any further, doesn’t help either.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 20 Mar. 2024
Related Articles Redwood City widow conned out of nearly $2 million, bank accused of helping scammers
The first 10 years of legal marijuana in Colorado were a wild ride.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2024
In the case that sent him to prison in November, Wooton conned a Clearwater man into giving him $10,000 in 2019 for the purchase of a motorhome that didn’t exist.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 14 Feb. 2024
Their bait-and-switch scam conned users with fake properties in major cities, including Los Angeles and Denver.
—Jenna Anderson, Sunset Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024
Noun
Loneliness was a con of the Vision Pro that reviewer after reviewer pointed out.
—Victoria Song, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
Weigh the pros and cons as the moon and Mars clash.
—USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2024
What This Means for You Some people can go their whole lives without experiencing any kind of biomechanical issue as a result of their footwear choices, even running long distances — and studies on barefoot running, in particular, are mixed as to the pros and cons.
—Laura Lancaster, Outdoor Life, 11 Apr. 2024
Get the recipe > Caldo de Cabeza de Pescado con Chochoyotes (Fish Head Soup with Masa Dumplings)
Obed Vallejo
Chef, Maíz de la Vida, Nashville, Tennessee
Born in Yucatán, chef Obed Vallejo moved to Florida as a kid.
—Shane Mitchell, Saveur, 28 Mar. 2024
Verdict: New Biz Player Is a Decent Value, But Needs Refinement
MSI’s new business laptop line comes with slightly fewer pros than cons on the final tally.
—PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024
The pros and cons of a possible de facto TikTok ban.
—Galen Druke, ABC News, 21 Mar. 2024
Read on to learn more about each website and the pros and cons of using them.
—Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2024
Anthony Vaccarello’s latest show for Saint Laurent divided opinions, with the pros and cons often falling along gender lines.
—Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2024
Adjective
There’s Benjamin Franklin’s three-century-old pro/con model, but there are also more advanced ways to answer important questions, Kozyrkov said.
—Byrachyl Jones, Fortune, 6 Sep. 2023
The thing to eat is at Vitek's and called the Gut Pack: Barbecue beans, cheese and con chips with sausage and peppers.
—Scott Springer, The Enquirer, 2 July 2023
But when the man Maizy brings back is more con than corn, Lulu and the entire town must learn that sometimes help comes from unlikely corny places.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 3 May 2023
While travelling on a cruise ship, Hopsie falls for a con woman named Jean Harrington (Barbara Stanwyck).
—Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2023
Torn between her feelings for Paxton and Ben, Devi creates a pro-con list with Fab and Eleanor.
—Leah Campano, Seventeen, 11 Aug. 2022
And while the old Miranda would have faced her mid-life crisis by whipping a legal pad out of her normcore briefcase and making a pro-con list, this Miranda’s response is a lot more Carrie.
—Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 21 Jan. 2022
Indeed, Harmon's aim for her story was not to wade through the pro/con GMO arguments, but to open a new window onto a complicated subject.
—Keith Kloor, Discover Magazine, 1 Aug. 2013
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'con.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near con
Cite this Entry
“Con.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/con. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
con
2 of 5 adverb
: on the negative side : in opposition
argue pro and con
con
3 of 5 noun
: an opposing argument, person, or position
the pros and cons of the question
con
4 of 5 adjective
: confidence entry 2
a con game
con-
5 of 5
see com-
Etymology
Verb
Middle English connen "to know, learn," derived from can (auxiliary verb) "to know, know how to"
Adverb
Middle English con "on the negative side, against"; a shortened form of contra "against, contrary"
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