bamboozle
[bæm.buːz.əl]
verb
Origin
English
bam — to trick, to con
Overview
Meaning Now
- to trick or deceive
- to confuse or perplex
Language path
English
Earliest form
bam
Earliest period
17th century
Journey
The verb evolved from the noun form 'bam', meaning fraudster, and entered common usage in the 1700s.
Evolution
- 17th century
bam
“to trick, to con”
vernacular noun
- 18th century
bamboozle
“to trick or deceive, to confuse”
derived from bam
Connections
Word parts
bam
root
to trick
-oozle
suffix
verb-forming
Related across languages
French
embobiner
to trick
Explore next
Related to bamboozle
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.