Grift

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /ɡɹɪft/

Definitions

1. A fraudulent scheme or swindle in which someone obtains money or advantage through deception or petty dishonest means
2. A deceitful practice that involves trickery to gain financial benefits or advantages while exploiting the trust of others
3. An act of cheating or conning someone to obtain money or resources through dishonest and often clever methods

Etymology: Grift began as American underworld slang, and its first recorded use as a noun dates to 1906, with the verb following about a decade later, in 1915. It is an alteration of "graft," the older criminal term for corruption or illicit profit, and that is the most useful clue to its meaning: a grift is a graft in a sleeker, more con-man form. The change in sound may have been nudged by similar-sounding words such as "drift," though the reshaping is not fully explained. Behind "graft" lies a much more physical image. Its likely source is Middle Dutch "graft," meaning a digging, a ditch, or a canal, related to the Dutch verb "graven," to dig. English "grave," the verb meaning to dig or engrave, belongs to the same family. A word that once described hollowing out earth came to describe hollowing out a victim's wallet.

Synonyms: swindle, con, scam, fraud, cheat

Antonyms: honesty, integrity, truthfulness, trustworthiness, fairness