baits and switches

A form of bait and switch — An unscrupulous and sometimes illegal sales technique, in which an inexpensive product is advertised to attract prospective customers who are then told by sales personnel that the inexpensive product is unavailable or of poor quality and are instead urged to buy a more expensive product.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verb
  1. indicativepresentsingularthird personthird-person singular simple present indicative of bait and switch
Cite this entry
APA

baits and switches. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/baits%20and%20switches

MLA

“baits and switches.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/baits%20and%20switches. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “baits and switches,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/baits%20and%20switches.

Source: baits and switches on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.