CON Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com (original) (raw)

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con
con-
con.
Con.

adverb

against a proposition, opinion, etc..

arguments pro and con.

noun

the argument, position, arguer, or voter against something.

The pros of the library project are obvious, but we have to consider the cons as well.

con 2 American

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

to swindle; trick.

That crook conned me out of all my savings.
to persuade by deception, cajolery, etc..

Don't worry, I can always con my dad into letting me use his car.

noun

a confidence game or swindle.

By the time my uncle realized she was playing a con on him, she had already left town with his rare coin collection.
a lie, exaggeration, or glib self-serving talk.

He had a dozen different cons for getting out of paying traffic tickets.

adjective

relating to or involving abuse of confidence.

a slick con man;

a con trick.

con 3 American

[kon] / kɒn /

a convict.

Her brother's a con up in Elmira.

con 4 American

[kon] / kɒn /

a convention, especially one for fans of a particular type of popular culture.

sci-fi, gaming, and anime cons.

con 5 American

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

to learn; study; peruse or examine carefully.

She's been conning her grandfather's medical diaries for months.
to commit to memory.

I have conned the state capitals in alphabetical order, from Albany to Trenton.

con 6 American

[kon] / kɒn /

Or conn

verb (used with object)

conned, conning

to direct the steering of (a ship).

conning the freighter into port.

noun

the station of the person who cons.

You will assume the con, ensign.
the act of conning.

Storms from the northeast made for a difficult con.

con 7 American

[kon] / kɒn /

verb (used with object)

British Dialect.

conned, conning

to strike, hit, or rap (something or someone).

We think he was conned with a cricket bat.
to hammer (a nail or peg).

Who knew conning tacks into the new carpet would take so long?
to beat or thrash (a person) with the hands or a weapon.

He conned the poor guy in the pub for no apparent reason.

variant of com- before a consonant (except_b, h, l, p, r_ ) and, by assimilation, before n: convene; condone; connection.

abbreviation

concerto.
conclusion.
connection.
consolidated.
consul.
continued.
against.

abbreviation

Conformist.
Consul.

noun

1. short for confidence trick
2. ( as modifier )
  
  con man

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

(tr) to swindle or defraud

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

an argument or vote against a proposal, motion, etc
a person who argues or votes against a proposal, motion, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

(tr) to direct the steering of (a vessel)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

the place where a person who cons a vessel is stationed

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

abbreviation

Conservative

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

slang short for convict

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

archaic (tr) to study attentively or learn (esp in the phrase con by rote )

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

preposition

music with

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

prefix

a variant of com-

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of con1

First recorded in 1575–85; short for Latin contrā “in opposition, against”

Origin of con2

An Americanism first recorded in 1895–1900; by shortening of confidence

Origin of con3

First recorded in 1715–25; by shortening

Origin of con4

First recorded in 1940–45; by shortening

Origin of con5

First recorded before 1000; Middle English cunnen, Old English cunnan, variant of can 1 in sense “become acquainted with, learn to know”

Origin of con6

First recorded in 1350–1400; earlier cond, apocopated variant of Middle English condie, condue, from Middle French cond(u)ire, from Latin condūcere “to conduct”

Origin of con7

First recorded in 1890–95; perhaps akin to French cognée “hatchet,” cogner “to knock in, drive (a nail) home”

Origin of con-8

From Latin

Origin of con.9

From the Latin word contrā

Explanation

A con, or confidence game, is a swindle — when you take advantage of someone's trust. If you con someone out of their life savings, you might wind up a con — as in convict. The word con has many meanings, none of them good. An argument has pros and cons, and the cons are always the downside. An ex-con is someone who spent time in jail as a convict, and a con artist is someone who scams people out of their money.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing con

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Spring brings risi e bisi, the classic Venetian rice-and-peas dish; autumn meant bigoli con l’anatra, a spaghetti-like pasta with duck ragù.

FromThe Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

La IA ya se ha entrelazado con la vida cotidiana, afirmó, y pidió a los asistentes que levantaran la mano si habían utilizado TSA PreCheck o un servicio de streaming.

FromLos Angeles Times • Apr. 19, 2026

"Stefan Pildes promoted SantaCon as an event grounded in charitable giving, but instead of donating the millions of dollars he raised, he ran his own con game," US Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement.

FromBBC • Apr. 15, 2026

Ortiz’s first job out of school was working on Venezuelan-born theater director and filmmaker Moisés Kaufman’s 2010 production of Xavier Montsalvatge’s Spanish-language opera, “El gato con botas.”

FromLos Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

He asked me again, earnestly, to con it out; and I admitted that the letters were not formed in complete perfection; that it resembled somewhat, Liberty to Slane, with a wriggling trail after the e.

From"The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.