Word of the Day

: May 27, 2007

flimflam

verb FLIM-flam

What It Means

: to subject to a deception or fraud

flimflam in Context

Mrs. Grayson was one of several people in the neighborhood who were flimflammed into donating money to the phony charity.

Did You Know?

English is full of words concerned with trickery and deception, ranging from the colorful "flimflam," "bamboozle," and "hornswoggle" to the more mundane "deceive," "mislead," and "delude." "Flimflam" first entered English as a noun meaning "deceptive nonsense" in the second half of the 16th century. A sense meaning "deception" or "fraud" soon developed. The verb use didn't show up until well into the next century. In addition to general deceiving or tricking, the verb "flimflam" is often used specifically to refer to swindling someone out of money. The ultimate origin of "flimflam" is uncertain, but the word is probably of Scandinavian origin and may be related to the Old Norse "flim," meaning "mockery."