Synonyms of gambit

gambit

noun

ˈgam-bət 

as in ruse

a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end

The seemingly benign questioning was all just a gambit to get them to fess up to their wrongdoing.

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ruse
• scheme
• trick
• device
• stratagem
• ploy
• jig
• dodge
• sleight of hand
• fetch
• bluff
• knack
• gimmick
• flimflam
• sleight
• wile
• play
• deception
• artifice
• cunning
• feint
• subterfuge
• juggle
• shenanigan
• trickery
• chicanery
• duplicity
• hoax
• swindle
• skulduggery
• end run
• swindling
• legerdemain
• jugglery
• cheating
• fakery
• fraud
• sham
• gaff
• crookery
• blind
• smoke screen
• craft
• cozenage
• front
• dupery

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of gambit

The gambit has drawn lawsuits from opponents who argue the new districts are not compact and violate the state constitution, but the Missouri Supreme Court has left the map in place. — Joe Walsh, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026

San Francisco made a risky gambit on Thursday by allowing left-hander Robbie Ray, who will likely be traded as well, to start against the Padres. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 2 Aug. 2026

While his exhortation left off Brady’s signature profane intensifier, the motivational gambit remained explicit even in the absence of the familiar F-bomb. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 31 July 2026

Still, only one person became a celluloid legend from Universal’s gambit — and that person wasn’t Carlos Villarias, who outlived Lugosi by two decades yet never achieved anything like the same renown. — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 31 July 2026

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