scam
nounverbcommon in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˈskæm//
- United Kingdom/[ˈskæm]/
- United Kingdom//ˈskam//
- United Kingdom/[ˈskam]/
- /[ˈskam] ~ [ˈskäm]/
A fraudulent or dishonest deal. A swindle.
noun
- 1
A fraudulent or dishonest deal. A swindle.
That marketing scheme looks like a scam to me.
- 2
Something that is promoted using scams.
That new diet burger is a scam.
Etymology
US American carnival slang of uncertain origin. Possibly from scamp (“swindler, cheater”) or Irish cam (“crooked”). Also possibly from Danish skam; if so, it would be a doublet of shame and sham. First use appears c. 1963 in the periodical Time. The word became common use among the US drug culture when in early 1980, after Operation ABSCAM, an FBI sting operation directed at public officials, became public.
verb
- 1
To defraud or embezzle.
They tried to scam her out of her savings.
- 2
slangTo seek out a partner for casual sex; to hit on.
His friend nudged me. "It's true. JJ only scams black ladies." / "You don't say?" / "J-boy scammed a real live Miss Black Universe once. Met her in a disco down in Honduras. Wearing her title. Since then he's been obsessed."
Forms
- plural
- scams
- past tense
- scammed
- past participle
- scammed
- present participle
- scamming
- third person singular
- scams