goldbrick

American  

[gohld-brik, gohld-brik] / ˈgoʊldˈbrɪk, ˈgoʊldˌbrɪk /

noun

1. Informal. a brick made to look like gold, sold by a swindler.

2. Informal. anything supposed to be valuable but which turns out to be worthless.

3. Slang. Also goldbricker a person, especially a soldier, who shirks responsibility or performs duties without proper effort or care.

---

verb (used without object)

Slang.

1. to shirk responsibility or perform halfheartedly; loaf.

verb (used with object)

1. to swindle; cheat.

Etymology

Origin of goldbrick

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55; gold + brick

Example Sentences

There was one more anxious moment when it looked as if Colonel Ruppert might have bought a $75,000 goldbrick.

From Time Magazine Archive

Among its 113 characters, every military type is represented�the good soldier, the coward, the goldbrick, the rank-happy shavetail, the lucky and the wound-prone.

From Time Magazine Archive

In spite of his rare protective talents as a chowhound and goldbrick, Lanza's throat was so raw with Texas dust that he could not sing.

From Time Magazine Archive

To U.S. soldiers, "Sad Sack" is the funniest little lug who ever got a typhus shot or tried to goldbrick out of a duty.

From Time Magazine Archive

True enough, assignments do not all have the same level of work requirement, and one is sometimes handed a wide open opportunity to goldbrick.

From The Armed Forces Officer Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-2 by United States. Dept. of Defense