trick

trick¹ S3 [trık] n

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1¦(something that deceives somebody)¦

2¦(joke)¦

3¦(something that makes things appear different)¦

4 a dirty/rotten/mean trick

5 do the trick

6¦(magic)¦

7¦(clever method)¦

8 use/try every trick in the book

9 teach/show somebody a trick or two

10 somebody is up to their (old) tricks

11¦(cards)¦

12¦(habit)¦

13 never miss a trick

14 how's tricks?

15¦(sex)¦

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[Date: 1400-1500; : Old North French; Origin: trique, from trikier 'to deceive, cheat', from Old French trichier]

1.) ¦(SOMETHING THAT DECEIVES SOMEBODY)¦

something you do in order to deceive someone

▪ Pretending he doesn't remember is an old trick of his.

▪ He didn't really lose his wallet - that's just a trick.

2.) ¦(JOKE)¦

something you do to surprise someone and to make other people laugh

▪ I'm getting tired of your silly tricks.

▪ The girls were playing tricks on their teacher.

3.) ¦(SOMETHING THAT MAKES THINGS APPEAR DIFFERENT)¦

something that makes things appear to be different from the way they really are

▪ After walking for hours in the hot sun, his mind began playing tricks on him.

▪ At first he thought someone was coming towards him, but it was just a trick of the light .

4.) a dirty/rotten/mean trick

an unkind or unfair thing to do

▪ He didn't turn up? What a dirty trick!

5.) do the trick

spoken if something does the trick, it solves a problem or provides what is needed to get a good result

▪ A bit more flour should do the trick.

6.) ¦(MAGIC)¦

a skilful set of actions that seem like magic, done to entertain people

▪ My uncle was always showing me card tricks when I was a kid.

▪ a magic trick

7.) ¦(CLEVER METHOD)¦

a way of doing something that works very well but may not be easy to notice

▪ The trick is to bend your knees as you catch the ball.

▪ a salesman who knew all the tricks of the trade (=clever methods used in a particular job)

8.) use/try every trick in the book

to use every method that you know, even dishonest ones, to achieve what you want

9.) teach/show sb a trick or two informal

used to say that someone knows more than someone else or can do something better than them

▪ Experienced teachers can show new teachers a trick or two.

10.) sb is up to their (old) tricks informal

to be doing the same dishonest things that you have often done before

11.) ¦(CARDS)¦

the cards played or won in one part of a game of cards

▪ He won the first three tricks easily.

12.) ¦(HABIT)¦

have a trick of doing sth

BrE to have a habit of using a particular expression or of moving your face or body in a particular way

▪ She had this trick of raising her eyebrows at the end of a question.

13.) never miss a trick

spoken to always know exactly what is happening even if it does not concern you

▪ Dave's found out. He never misses a trick, does he?.

14.) how's tricks?

old-fashioned spoken used to greet someone in a friendly way

▪ Hello, Bill! How's tricks?

15.) ¦(SEX)¦

AmE old-fashioned informal someone who pays a ↑prostitute to have sex

turn a trick

(=to have sex with someone for money)

→↑confidence trick,dirty trick at ↑dirty¹ (6), you can't teach an old dog new tricks at ↑teach, ↑hat trick

trick ²

trick² v [T]

1.) to deceive someone in order to get something from them or to make them do something

▪ She knew she'd been tricked, but it was too late.

trick sb into doing sth

▪ He claimed he was tricked into carrying drugs.

trick sb out of sth

▪ The corporation was tricked out of $20 million.

trick your way into/past/onto etc sth

▪ He tricked his way into her home by pretending to be a policeman.

2.) be tricked out with/in sth

BrE literary to be decorated with something

▪ a hat tricked out with ribbons

trick ³

trick³ adj

1.) trick photography

when a photograph or picture has been changed so that it looks different from what was really there

2.) a trick question

a question which seems easy to answer but has a hidden difficulty

3.) a trick knee/ankle/shoulder etc

AmE a joint that is weak and can suddenly cause you problems