Definition of HOODWINK

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A now-obsolete sense of the word wink is "to close one's eyes," and "hoodwink" once meant to cover the eyes of someone, such as a prisoner, with a hood or blindfold. ("Hoodwink" was also once a name for the game of blindman's buff.) This 16th-century term soon came to be used figuratively for veiling the truth. "The Public is easily hood-winked," wrote the Irish physician Charles Lucas in 1756, by which time the figurative use had been around for almost a century and a half. Two hundred and fifty years later, this meaning of the word hasn't changed a wink: "The American public has been hoodwinked and fleeced," wrote Theodore Wolff, for example, in the Iowa State Daily on July 6, 2006.

Examples of hoodwink in a Sentence

Don't let yourself be hoodwinked into buying things you don't need. Tom Sawyer famously hoodwinked the other boys into thinking there was nothing more enjoyable than whitewashing a fence.

Recent Examples on the Web

The chair of the court is rarely in the news, though Habgood’s name featured last year when he was impersonated by an online prankster who briefly hoodwinked Carney. — David Goodman, Bloomberg.com, "Bank of England Has Big Governing Job to Fill Before Carney Goes," 16 Apr. 2018 Appearing on a number of Sunday morning news shows, national security adviser John Bolton sought to dispel concerns that the White House is being hoodwinked. — Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, "Trump said North Korea was ‘no longer a nuclear threat.’ His spies disagree.," 2 July 2018 All that thieves need to do is hoodwink Philadelphia’s Records Department and its gullible and often careless deed room. — Craig R. Mccoy, Philly.com, "A Philadelphia story: Falsely declared dead, home stolen and no one will help," 29 June 2018 The list of high-profile people Holmes managed to hoodwink is almost as eye-popping as her deceits. — Julia Belluz, Vox, "How Silicon Valley got played by Theranos," 15 June 2018 The question is: will a team move up, or could a savvy front office try to hoodwink Kings general manager Vlade Divac. — Peter Dawson, star-telegram, "NBA Mock Draft 4.0: Mavs pass on Mo Bamba, opt for Mizzou superstar instead," 6 June 2018 There could come a time when Danny Ainge’s trading of Jeff Green three years ago will be hailed as another of his celebrated capers, with the Memphis Grizzlies added to the roll call of the hoodwinked. — New York Times, "Look Who Answered LeBron’s Call: Jeff Green, the Former Celtic," 28 May 2018 Buc-ee's counsel has argued that competitor Choke Canyon intentionally used a cartoon animal in its logo to confuse drivers into exiting the highway and provided similar items and services inside the travel center to further hoodwink clients. — Gabrielle Banks, Houston Chronicle, "Buc-ee’s, Choke Canyon making final plugs to jury in trademark case," 21 May 2018 Seeing that audience hoodwinked set me up for a life of wondering: Is an artist obligated to reveal how much of his or her creativity is being assisted by technology? — David Pogue, Scientific American, "Should Artists Reveal How Much They Let Technology Make Creative Choices?," 1 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hoodwink.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.