TRICKS Synonyms: 247 Similar and Opposite Words

tricks 1 of 2

noun

plural of trick

as in ruses

a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end her husband used every trick in the book to get out of appearing in his parish's fashion show

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as in pranks

a playful or mischievous act intended as a joke thought that gluing the silver dollar to the floor and watching him struggle to pick it up would be a good trick

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as in rituals

a usual manner of behaving or doing that deadbeat is up to his usual tricks: once again he's claiming the check is in the mail

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as in feats

an act of notable skill, strength, or cleverness it'd be quite a trick to hit that target from here

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as in traits

an odd or peculiar habit a dog with the trick of eating cabbage

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

conformities

tricks

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of trick

as in fools

to cause to believe what is untrue you tricked me into thinking my ex wasn't coming to the party tonight

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of tricks

Noun

Ahead, moving-industry insiders reveal their tricks of the trade to make moving so much better. — Perri Ormont Blumberg, Architectural Digest, 12 Oct. 2026 For most of history, locksmiths and lockmakers have guarded their secrets as closely as magicians withhold their tricks. — Shayla Love, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2026 Homemade enchiladas might sound like a laborious weekend project, but with a few clever tricks, this version made with black beans and pumpkin can be whipped up on even the most hurried of work nights. — Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 5 Oct. 2026 Chinese robotics startup LinkerBot has demonstrated the dexterity of its new robotic hand by teaching it to perform magic tricks. — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2026 While some of its high-level LLM tricks are downright goofy, essential features like live captions, translations, and mini-map navigation perform admirably. — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 28 Sep. 2026 Collier has been up to her old tricks, scoring in bunches and contributing a ton of rebounds. — David Troy Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026 The List is full of her signature folk-rock tricks, looking back on her long, twisted, remarkable life in music. — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 21 Sep. 2026 Buttons Undone One of the simplest tricks for making a button-down shirt feel fresh and fancy? — Aemilia Madden, Glamour, 18 Sep. 2026

Verb

While Bela is using the bathroom, Other Mommy approaches her and tricks her into agreeing that their family would be better if Frank wasn’t around. — William Earl, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026 Twenty-one players, two tribes — there’s still tricks up host Jeff Probst’s sleeve. — Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026 Mykal-Michelle Harris from Raven’s Home guest stars as Ruby, a mischievous moon imp who tricks Vee. — Allison McClain Merrill, Parents, 22 Sep. 2026 Short crown layers build lift and help create volume, which tricks the eye into seeing more density overall, and face-framing pieces create visual fullness around the face. — Marci Robin, Allure, 11 Aug. 2026 Lord Ormund’s Gambit Lord Ormund has many, many tricks up his green sleeves. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026 In effect, RedHook tricks the phone into connecting to its own powerful debugging controls, giving the malware deeper access without a computer. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 20 July 2026 Exterior walls, similarly, may be warmer than an interior wall, which tricks the thermostat and causes the AC to run longer than necessary. — Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 15 July 2026 Cthulhu, who tricks the Minions into releasing his friends from purgatory. — Damon Wise, Deadline, 29 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tricks

Noun

There’s a delightful secret history of Hollywood directors whose ruses and stratagems bought them an unusual amount of leeway with their scripts.

— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2026
Even before pro-party AI ruses were possible, the Chinese government and its supporters flooded social media with pro-China propaganda and vicious attacks on critics.

— Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026

Definition of ruses

Noun

The Muskego Police Department is warning Muskego High School students about consequences of pranks causing damage after the department received over 20 complaints in less than two weeks.

— Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 22 Sep. 2026
The set includes a variety of items, including a new book entitled Slappy’s Book of Pranks, which includes directions for over 20 different pranks, Slappy trivia, a history of pranking, jokes and an introduction by Stine himself.

— Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of pranks

Noun

Here are 16 satisfying activities and rituals to add to your fall bucket list.

— Clare Marie Schneider, NPR, 10 Oct. 2026
Shunned by locals, who believe she is cursed, Eleni turns to ancient rituals to resurrect her dead offspring but instead summons malevolent folkloric creatures known as the Kalikantzari.

— Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of rituals

Noun

The explosive growth of the robotics industry in recent years is reflected in new technology feats, but also by the proliferation of new business and distribution models.

— Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026
Their feats include representing Influence Media Partners in its agreement to acquire Anthem Entertainment’s portfolio of music publishing and master recordings of such artists as Britney Spears and DJ Khaled.

— Claudia Rosenbaum, HollywoodReporter, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of feats

Noun

The team’s brightest moment comes when Olivia realizes that Daisy has incorporated her unique personality traits, like praying repetitiously and loving the musical Annie.

— Noel Murray, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2026
Publishers sold albums of facsimile autographs, and the interest developed into the field of graphology, the practice of analyzing a person’s handwriting to purportedly discern personality traits.

— Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of traits

Noun

These devices allow consumers to access movies, television series, live sports broadcasts and other content without authorization from copyright holders.

— Marcelo Cajueiro, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026
No additional shots were fired after police arrived, Lorah said, adding that sounds later mistaken for gunfire came from flash-bang devices used by SWAT officers.

— Eric Mack, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of devices

Noun

Along with first-run movies and classics, the Bay will host special screenings and immersive theatrical experiences, said Paramount, which is taking over the theater formerly operated by Netflix and Cinepolis before that.

— Erik Pedersen, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
Globally, consumers cut spending after 47% of bad experiences, according to a Qualtrics XM Institute survey of more than 20,000 people across 14 countries, conducted in 2025.

— Bilin Lin, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026