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Synonyms

hornswoggle

American  
[hawrn-swog-uhl] / ˈhɔrnˌswɒg əl /

verb (used with object)

Slang.
hornswoggled, hornswoggling

  1. to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

hornswoggle British  
/ ˈhɔːnˌswɒɡəl /

verb

  1. slang (tr) to cheat or trick; bamboozle

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

Where does hornswoggle come from? Hornswoggle, as noted in our definition above, means "to swindle, cheat, or hoax." But, it would be cheating for us to say we know where hornswoggle comes from exactly. Its earliest known appearance so far is in the U.S. around 1815–25.Is hornswoggle supposed to sound like some hullabaloo from some sort of trumpet? Did a hog get all washed up? Well, sometimes nonsense words are just that—nonsense. Ultimately, hornswoggle is probably just a fanciful, funny formation.Many more amusing Americanisms await in our slideshow "These Wacky Words Originated In The USA."

Etymology

Origin of hornswoggle

1815–25 origin uncertain

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.