English Explanatory Dictionary

flim-flam

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Misinformation; bunkum; false information presented as true.
  2. Confidence game, con game.
  3. Table tennis.

Pronunciation

/ˈflɪmflæm/ En-us-flim-flam.oga

Word forms

flim-flam flim-flams flimflam flim flam

Etymology

Ultimately a sound-symbolic reduplication, 1538 as noun, 1660 as verb. Perhaps from a dialectal word or North Germanic/Scandinavian; compare Old Norse flim (“lampoon, mockery”).

Synonyms

absurdity all my eye all my eye and Betty Martin applesauce bafflegab balderdash balls baloney banana oil Bandini baragouin batcrap batshit bilgewater blah blather blatherskite bobbins bollocks bosh BS bull bullcrap bulldust bull feathers bullshit bullspeak bunk bunkum bushwah clamjamfrey claptrap cobblers codswallop crap crock crock of shit double Dutch double talk doublespeak dribble drivel eyewash fiddle-faddle flapdoodle flim-flam flizz flummery folderol foolishness footle framis fuckery fuckry fudge galimatias Gallophone garbage garble gash

Derived words

flim-flam man flam flim
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