Meaning
To trick, mislead, or cheat someone, often through flattery, fast talk, or deliberate confusion; a second sense is to perplex or completely bewilder. The word is informal and usually carries a note of amused disbelief at the deception. Informal and a little comic; lighter in tone than defraud or swindle. Regional use: General English.
Origin
First recorded in the early 18th century, dated to 1703 as both verb and noun, as criminals' cant meaning to cheat or swindle, and its origin is genuinely unknown. Suggested sources include the Scottish dialect verbs bombaze or bumbaze (to confound), French embabouiner (to make a baboon of, that is, to fool), and a connection with bombast, but none of these can be demonstrated. The word is often claimed for the sea, appearing in popular lists of nautical slang with stories of deceiving a pursuing or customs vessel under false colours or an invented Dutch source, yet no early maritime evidence supports these tales, and the standard dictionaries record no nautical origin at all.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- bamboozled
- bamboozler
- bamboozling
Usage Examples
- The con artist bamboozled dozens of investors with projections that were too good to be true.
- Do not let the salesperson bamboozle you into an extended warranty you will never use.
- I still cannot work out how the magician bamboozled a room full of sceptics with nothing but a deck of cards.