Synonyms and antonyms of Tricks, pretences and dishonest plans in British Thesaurus

spot fixing (noun)

in sport, making sure that a specific event happens during a game so that people who know this can win money by betting on it

ploy (noun)

a way of tricking or confusing someone in order to get an advantage or to make them do what you want

hoax (noun)

a trick in which someone deliberately tells people that something bad is going to happen or that something is true when it is not

dodge (noun)

a dishonest or clever way to avoid doing something unpleasant

ruse (noun)

a plan or trick used for hiding your true intentions

dirty tricks (noun)

dishonest ways of defeating or harming an opponent, especially in politics

prank (noun)

a silly trick that you play on someone to surprise them

April fool (noun)

a trick that you play on someone on April Fools’ Day

practical joke (noun)

a trick that is intended to surprise someone or make them look silly

trick (noun)

an unfair or unpleasant thing that you do in order to harm someone or to get an advantage for yourself

caper (noun)

informal an activity that is not honest or not very serious

cat and mouse (noun)

a situation in which you let someone else believe that they have managed to escape, before you actually catch them

cheat (noun)

something that is dishonest or unfair

con (noun)

informal a dishonest plan or method for making someone give you money

confidence trick (noun)

a trick in which you persuade someone to trust you and then get money from them

con trick (noun)

Britishinformal a dishonest trick to make someone give you money

contrivance (noun)

a plan to trick someone in order to get something for yourself, or the use of such a plan

cover-up (noun)

an attempt to stop people from discovering the truth about something, especially a crime or a serious mistake

cut (noun)

a situation in which you pretend not to see or recognize someone you know

delaying tactics (noun)

things that are deliberately said or done to make a process slower

fiddle (noun)

informal a dishonest method of getting money or other benefits

fix (noun)

a dishonest arrangement intended to produce a particular result

flimflam (noun)

informal a plan to steal from or cheat someone

gag (noun)

informal a joke, trick, or story that makes people laugh

gamesmanship (noun)

a way of increasing your chances of success against an opponent by doing things to make your opponent lose confidence

hocus-pocus (noun)

an activity or a belief that you think has no value and is intended to trick people

hustle (noun)

mainly American a dishonest way of making money

intrigue (noun)

a secret plan to harm or cheat someone, or the process of making such a plan

jape (noun)

old-fashioned a trick that you play on someone to make them feel silly or look stupid

legerdemain (noun)

formal the ability to use your hands quickly and skilfully to do tricks. A more usual word for this is sleight of hand.

leg-pull (noun)

British a joke, or something that you do to try to trick someone in a funny way

manoeuvre (noun)

a clever or dishonest action that you do to get something that you want

mind game (noun)

a series of actions intended to affect how someone thinks and feels, especially in order to make them confused or less confident

the oldest trick in the book ()

a dishonest method of doing something that you know about because it has been used many times before

pretence (noun)

a way of behaving that does not honestly express your real feelings, thoughts, or intentions

pretense ()

the American spelling of pretence

put-up job (noun)

informal an event or situation that has been secretly planned in order to trick someone

rort (noun)

Australianinformal a dishonest plan or activity

routine (noun)

a false way of behaving that is intended to achieve a particular result

scam (noun)

informal a dishonest plan, especially for getting money

scheme (noun)

a plan for achieving something, especially something illegal or dishonest

set-up (noun)

informal a situation in which someone cheats or tricks you, especially by making you appear guilty when you are not

smokescreen (noun)

something that you say or do as a way of hiding your real feelings, intentions, or activities

snare (noun)

literary a trick that catches someone and keeps them in an unpleasant situation

sophistry (noun)

formal arguments or explanations that seem clever and correct but are really false and used for tricking people

stalking horse (noun)

an action intended to hide what someone is really trying to do

stitch-up (noun)

informal a dishonest or unfair arrangement or result

stratagem (noun)

formal a plan for achieving something or for tricking someone

subterfuge (noun)

formal the use of lies and tricks

trap (noun)

a trick that is designed to catch someone or to make them do or say something that they did not want to do or say

trick (noun)

something that you do in order to annoy someone or to make people laugh at them, often by making them believe something that is not true

trick (noun)

something that is not really what it seems to be

whitewash (noun)

an attempt to stop people discovering the true facts about something, in order to prevent someone in authority from being criticized

wind-up (noun)

Britishinformal something that you say or do to deliberately annoy or trick someone