bull con

noun

A confidence trick, or deceptive speech by a swindler.

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Meanings

nounbull con (plural bull cons)

plural bull cons · alternative bull-con

  1. obsoleteslangA confidence trick, or deceptive speech by a swindler.

    Dem guys has got t’ show me somet’in’ before I’ll stan’ fer dem tales dey tell. I t’ink it’s all de bull con.

    1896, Frank Hutcheson, “The barkeep discusses hypnotism”, in The Barkeep Stories, Chicago: E.A. Weeks & Company, page 48
    2 more examples

    Like most fellows who stay in the West long, Allen was a great bull-con man (hot air man). […] I hadn't been in the West long, and the poorest kind of bull-con dealer found in me an easy mark.

    1907, John Peele, From North Carolina to Southern California without a Ticket and How I did it, page 109

    Every man who makes his living by peddling "bull con" can be put down as an enemy of liberty. The "bull con" artists are pretty plentiful yet.

    1913 July 1, J.F., “Another great book”, in The Syndicalist, page 2

Origin

Compound of bull (“lies; insincere talk”) + con (“a confidence trick; fraud”). Attested from the late 19th century.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

bull con. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bull%20con

MLA

“bull con.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bull%20con. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bull con,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bull%20con.

Source: bull con on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.