trick or treat

noun

variants or trick-or-treat

ˈtrik-ər-ˈtrēt 

: a Halloween practice in which children wearing costumes go from door to door in a neighborhood saying "trick or treat" when a door is opened to ask for treats with the implied threat of playing tricks on those who refuse

… a whimsical 1951 Saturday Evening Post cover on which costumed children are surprised by a disguised adult who opens the door for trick-or-treat.

—Antiques and The Arts Weekly

trick-or-treat intransitive verb

trick-or-treated; trick-or-treating; trick-or-treats

I drive home at lunch and pick the boys up for trick-or-treating. Marcus is a rancher and Howie's an accountant. He's wearing thick fake lips and carrying a ledger. The Park's the only safe place to trick-or-treat anymore.

—George Saunders

trick-or-treater noun

plural trick-or-treaters

A year ago, his wife suggested that he might feel better if he wore his old pirate-captain costume when he opened the door to trick-or-treaters, but a little boy in the first group of callers—a four-year-old who was ferociously costumed as a snaggletoothed monster—burst into tears at the sight of him.

—Calvin Trillin

trick-or-treating noun

This is a guy who went trick-or-treating in catcher's gear while the rest of his friends dressed as mummies and mass murderers.

—Franz Lidz

Examples of trick or treat in a Sentence

We got all dressed up for trick or treat.

When the door opened the kids all shouted “Trick or treat!”.

Recent Examples on the Web

Forecasters expect temperatures to hover in the 50s while gusty winds haunt the Midwest during trick or treat times. —John Tufts, IndyStar, 31 Oct. 2025

Candy is dandy but trick or treat for UNICEF has heft. —NPR, 30 Oct. 2025

Cincinnati communities Here are the communities in Cincinnati hosting trick or treat from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31. —Bebe Hodges, Cincinnati Enquirer, 28 Oct. 2025

Nextdoor trick or treat map Make trick-or-treating more enjoyable — and more bountiful — for all ages by using a map. —Cody Godwin, USA Today, 27 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for trick or treat

• bittersweet
• celestite
• incomplete
• indiscreet
• marguerite
• obsolete
• overeat
• overheat
• parakeet
• stillingfleet
• superheat
• amit

Kids Definition

trick or treat

noun

: a children's Halloween practice of going around usually in costume asking for treats

trick-or-treat verb

trick-or-treater noun