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trick or treat
1noun
- a children's Halloween custom, in which they call on neighbors, using this phrase, and threaten to play a trick if a treat is not given.
trick-or-treat
2[ trik-er-treet ]
verb (used without object)
- to become involved or take part in trick or treat.
trick or treat
sentence substitute
- the cry by children at Halloween when they call at houses, indicating that they want a present or money or else they will play a trick on the householder
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Other Words From
- trick-or-treater noun
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Word History and Origins
Origin of trick or treat1
First recorded in 1940–45
Origin of trick or treat2
First recorded in 1940–45
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Idioms and Phrases
A greeting by children asking for treats on Halloween and threatening to play a trick on those who refuse to give them. For example, The children went from house to house, shouting “Trick or treat!” [c. 1940]Advertisement
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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