The story
Derivative of 17th-century vernacular bam (“to trick, to con”), which is a derivative of bam in noun use (fraudster, cheat). Possibly from French embobiner.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
bamboozle
Today it means: To con, defraud, trick, to make a fool of, to humbug or impose on someone. Full definition →