trick or treat

noun

variants or trick-or-treat

ˈtrik-ər-ˈtrēt 

: a Halloween practice in which children wearing costumes go from door to door in a neighborhood saying "trick or treat" when a door is opened to ask for treats with the implied threat of playing tricks on those who refuse

… a whimsical 1951 Saturday Evening Post cover on which costumed children are surprised by a disguised adult who opens the door for trick-or-treat.

—Antiques and The Arts Weekly

trick-or-treat intransitive verb

trick-or-treated; trick-or-treating; trick-or-treats

I drive home at lunch and pick the boys up for trick-or-treating. Marcus is a rancher and Howie's an accountant. He's wearing thick fake lips and carrying a ledger. The Park's the only safe place to trick-or-treat anymore.

—George Saunders

trick-or-treater noun

plural trick-or-treaters

A year ago, his wife suggested that he might feel better if he wore his old pirate-captain costume when he opened the door to trick-or-treaters, but a little boy in the first group of callers—a four-year-old who was ferociously costumed as a snaggletoothed monster—burst into tears at the sight of him.

—Calvin Trillin

trick-or-treating noun

This is a guy who went trick-or-treating in catcher's gear while the rest of his friends dressed as mummies and mass murderers.

—Franz Lidz

Examples of trick or treat in a Sentence

We got all dressed up for trick or treat.

When the door opened the kids all shouted “Trick or treat!”.

Recent Examples on the Web

And will the weather trick or treat Kentuckians this year? Halloween events around Louisville Louisville Halloween Events:From 'Dracula' to ghost tours, here are 22 spooky Halloween events in Louisville Louisville Haunted Houses Louisville Haunted Houses:Boo! —Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 25 Oct. 2024

Hamilton County 2024 trick or treat hours Arcadia Arcadia's trick or treat will take place 5-8 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 31. —Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 24 Oct. 2024

Johnson adds that because the family has a few trick or treats and Halloween events, Stella also picked out a few more costumes including Wednesday Addams and Beetlejuice. —Jordan Greene, People.com, 24 Oct. 2024

Head to Resident Culture Brewing South End for vendors, costumes, ceramic ghost workshop plus trick or treat vendors. —Alexis Clinton, Axios, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

trick or treat

noun

: a children's Halloween practice of going around usually in costume asking for treats

trick-or-treat verb

trick-or-treater noun