trick

noun

\ ˈtrik

Definition of trick

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : a crafty procedure or practice meant to deceive or defraud

b : a mischievous act : prank

c : a deceptive, dexterous, or ingenious feat especially : one designed to puzzle or amuse a juggler's tricks

d : an indiscreet or childish action

2a(1) : a quick or artful way of getting a result : knack the trick is to make it look natural

(2) : an instance of getting a desired result one small adjustment will do the trick

b : a technical device (as of an art or craft) the tricks of stage technique

3a : a delusive appearance especially when caused by art or legerdemain : an optical illusion a mere trick of the light

b : a habitual peculiarity of behavior or manner a horse with the trick of shying

c : a characteristic and identifying feature a trick of speech

4 : the cards played in one round of a card game often used as a scoring unit

5a : a sexual act performed by a prostitute turning tricks also : john sense 2

b : shift sense 4b(1)

c : a trip taken as part of one's employment

d : a turn of duty at the helm usually lasting for two hours

6 : an attractive child or woman a cute little trick

trick

verb

tricked; tricking; tricks

Definition of trick (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to deceive by cunning or artifice : cheat

2 : to dress or adorn fancifully or ornately : ornament tricked out in a gaudy uniform

trick

adjective

Definition of trick (Entry 3 of 3)

1a : of or relating to or involving tricks or trickery trick photography trick dice

b : skilled in or used for tricks a trick horse

2a : somewhat defective and unreliable a trick lock

b : inclined to give way unexpectedly a trick knee

3 : trig

Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about trick

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Choose the Right Synonym for trick

Noun

trick, ruse, stratagem, maneuver, artifice, wile, feint mean an indirect means to gain an end. trick may imply deception, roguishness, illusion, and either an evil or harmless end. the tricks of the trade ruse stresses an attempt to mislead by a false impression. the ruses of smugglers stratagem implies a ruse used to entrap, outwit, circumvent, or surprise an opponent or enemy. the stratagem-filled game maneuver suggests adroit and skillful avoidance of difficulty. last-minute maneuvers to avert bankruptcy artifice implies ingenious contrivance or invention. the clever artifices of the stage wile suggests an attempt to entrap or deceive with false allurements. used all of his wiles to ingratiate himself feint implies a diversion or distraction of attention away from one's real intent. a feint toward the enemy's left flank

Examples of trick in a Sentence

Noun

It was a trick to persuade her to give him money. She enjoys playing tricks on her friends. For his last trick, the magician made a rabbit disappear.

Verb

He tricked her by wearing a disguise. you tricked me into thinking my ex wasn't coming to the party tonight

Adjective

a trick shot in pool He has a trick knee.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

For people with extremely sensitive skin, Dr. MacKelfresh says a simple rinse with water will do the trick. — Sara Coughlin, SELF, "Is Double Cleansing Truly Worth Your Precious Time?," 1 May 2019 That's something of a trick question, because the answer is both. — Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "How and When To Plant a Tree," 25 Apr. 2019 How to clean your glass cooktop to prevent stubborn stains The trick to keeping this surface clean and saving yourself more time, stress, and elbow grease is to stay ahead of the mess and not give it a chance to bake on in the first place. — Carolyn Forte, Good Housekeeping, "How to Clean A Glass Cooktop so it Looks Brand New Again," 30 Apr. 2019 Perhaps what has been another one of the show’s greatest magic tricks is making Quentin much more than just that default white male lead. — Gabe Bergado, Teen Vogue, ""The Magicians" Finale Just Pulled Off Its Most Heart-wrenching Risk Yet," 18 Apr. 2019 And, of course, there’s a trick tailgate that can either swing down or open barn-door style. — Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, "The 2019 Popular Mechanics Automotive Excellence Awards," 16 Apr. 2019 But Smith points to another trick that might pay off sooner for human medicine: The salamander can also heal large wounds without scarring. — Malcolm Ritter, The Seattle Times, "Science Says: Why scientists prize plant, animal genomes," 3 Apr. 2019 One trick that really seems to work: hold ice cubes in your hands or put ice or cold water on your face. — Colleen Stinchcombe, Woman's Day, "How to Deal With Anger in a Healthy Way," 18 Jan. 2019 The simple trick certainly seems to work for the Duchess, who always appears composed and poised during her copious public engagements. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "Meghan Markle Has a Simple Strategy for Battling Shyness," 11 Jan. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Bad people are trying to intimidate or trick people into not voting. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "Four ways the internet changed the midterm elections," 7 Nov. 2018 As previously reported, the series sees Cohen disguising himself and tricking people into going along with segments in order to make fools out of them. — Tyler Mccarthy, Fox News, "Sacha Baron Cohen called out by gun store owner for trying to trick him for a 'Who Is America?' sketch," 18 July 2018 On Tuesday, Palin wrote on Facebook that she was tricked into sitting down with Cohen. — Evan Real, Billboard, "Sacha Baron Cohen's Showtime Character Fires Back at Sarah Palin," 13 July 2018 The goal was to trick people into voting against their own self-interest. — Jenny Jarvie, latimes.com, "Here's how the Poor People's Campaign aims to finish what MLK started," 11 May 2018 But of course this didn't stop them from finding their way in: Teigen used a pair of scissors to trick the lock on the door. — Glamour, "John Legend Locked Chrissy Teigen Out of His Game of Thrones Viewing Party," 15 Apr. 2019 According to line of sight analysis, Russian security forces vehicles traveling in the convoy next to Putin were emitting GNSS signals that tricked receivers into thinking the President’s position was Anapa airport, more than 65 kilometers away. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Report: Russia Engaging in Widespread Satellite Navigation Spoofing," 3 Apr. 2019 By being available on a subdomain of a legitimate network intelligence company, the content was designed to manipulate Google search results in a way that tricked people into clicking on questionable links. — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, "When a network intel provider’s domain serves fraudulent content, something is wrong," 15 Nov. 2018 So what that shows, in short, is that a website that Microsoft had determined to be hosted on a Fancy Bear server was demonstrably trying to trick a McCaskill staffer into giving up access to their account. — Zack Beauchamp, Vox, "We have the first documented case of Russian hacking in the 2018 election," 26 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

The ‘00s are cool again, right? (Trick question: They, like Britney, have always been cool.) — Kara Nesvig, Allure, "The Top 10 Britney Spears Perfumes in Order of Greatness," 23 June 2017

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