Synonyms of con

con 1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈkän 

as in prisoner

a person convicted as a criminal and serving a prison sentence

a program to help ex-cons find employment

Synonyms & Similar Words

• prisoner
• convict
• inmate
• jailbird
• trusty
• captive
• capture
• parolee
• lifer
• internee
• probationer

con

2 of 4

noun (2)

as in scam

an instance of the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value

the explanation was so plausible that I never suspected it was all a con to make off with my car

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scam
• fraud
• swindle
• bunko
• bunco
• scheme
• hoax
• flimflam
• shell game
• sting
• trick
• fiddle
• device
• hustle
• cross
• counterfeit
• racket
• Ponzi scheme
• pyramid scheme
• fix
• ploy
• stratagem
• jig
• sham
• dodge
• phoney
• fake
• wile
• gimmick
• rip-off
• forgery
• sleight
• phony
• gouging
• thimblerig
• overcharging
• soaking
• three-card monte
• humbug

con

3 of 4

verb (1)

1

as in to study

to commit to memory

usually candidates con their entire campaign speech, right down to the jokes they supposedly ad-lib

Synonyms & Similar Words

• study
• learn
• memorize
• know
• remember
• understand
• grasp
• recall
• think (of)
• retain
• get
• accept
• recollect
• apprehend
• hark back (to)
• comprehend
• reminisce (about)
• digest
• mind
• absorb
• relive

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• forget
• unlearn
• slight
• ignore
• disregard
• pass over
• overlook
• neglect
• disremember
• misremember
• slur (over)
• overpass

2

as in to scan

to look over closely (as for judging quality or condition)

seemed to be conning his face for any sign of uncertainty

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scan
• review
• survey
• examine
• inspect
• view
• go over
• audit
• watch
• check (out)
• scrutinize
• analyze
• oversee
• overlook
• study
• investigate
• notice
• explore
• dissect
• peruse
• pore (over)
• parse
• classify
• research
• comb
• probe
• observe
• plumb
• categorize
• pick over
• delve (into)
• reinspect
• resurvey
• rereview

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• skim
• miss
• glance (at or over)

con

4 of 4

verb (2)

1

as in to cheat

to rob by the use of trickery or threats

a fly-by-night operator who had conned hundreds of would-be homeowners out of their hard-earned money

Synonyms & Similar Words

• cheat
• squeeze
• hustle
• sting
• pluck
• stick
• swindle
• screw
• beat
• trick
• deceive
• do
• flimflam
• shake down
• defraud
• bilk
• sucker
• fleece
• chouse
• bleed
• mulct
• stiff
• skin
• short
• victimize
• euchre
• fiddle
• gaff
• cozen
• ream
• hose
• exploit
• nobble
• rip off
• chisel
• shortchange
• diddle
• rook
• fool
• take for a ride
• skunk
• thimblerig
• do in
• betray
• take to the cleaners
• wrench
• sell a bill of goods to
• extort
• clip
• dupe
• nick
• overcharge
• rope (in)
• milk
• gouge
• gull
• wrest
• wring
• bitch
• soak
• double-cross
• bamboozle
• fast-talk

2

as in to trick

to cause to believe what is untrue

tried to con me into thinking that he had actually won the lottery

Synonyms & Similar Words

• trick
• fool
• deceive
• dupe
• kid
• delude
• hoax
• mislead
• tease
• sucker
• bluff
• juggle
• humbug
• hoodwink
• cheat
• gull
• bamboozle
• spoof
• gaff
• string along
• suck in
• misinform
• cozen
• buffalo
• sting
• hornswoggle
• misguide
• snow
• take in
• have on
• fake out
• beguile
• gammon
• snooker
• catch
• do a number on
• have
• burn
• lead one down the garden path
• lead one up the garden path
• pull one's leg
• swindle
• pull the wool over one's eyes
• put on
• stick
• defraud
• fleece
• mulct
• euchre
• flimflam
• skin
• hustle
• shortchange
• chisel
• rook
• diddle
• bleed
• squeeze

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• undeceive
• expose
• reveal
• unmask
• show up
• debunk
• tell
• uncover
• disclose
• divulge
• unveil
• uncloak
• disillusion
• disabuse
• disenchant

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of con

Noun

To address this con of complacency, employers should be proactive in employee engagement and satisfaction to keep up morale through offering upskilling, mentorship, internal mobility opportunities and more. —Vicki Salemi, Boston Herald, 28 Sep. 2025

Calls climate change ‘greatest con job ever perpetrated’ Trump reserved some of his most aggressive remarks in rejecting global efforts to rein in fossil fuel use and promote renewable, clean energy. —Laura Kelly, The Hill, 23 Sep. 2025

Verb

At the end of 2022, the FBI reported that at least 3,000 underage victims, mostly boys, had been conned by these lies, with more than a dozen suicide deaths resulting. —PC Magazine, 23 Aug. 2025

In 2022, he executive produced the Netflix docuseries Bad Vegan, which follows the story of Sarma Melngailis whose vegan restaurant was conned out of money by her husband. —Rebecca Aizin, People.com, 18 Aug. 2025

Phrases Containing con

• mod con