Meanings
plural try-ons
- slangAn attempt to "try it on", to see whether somebody can be duped.
But just about there the Highway took a twist that put a stop to any more of these try-on pranks[.]
1936, Norman Lindsay, The Flyaway Highway, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 771 more example
Then he burst into a stream of horrible profanity. "What's the game?" he cried, glaring round him. "Do you think I am easy and that you can play me for a sucker? Is it a frame-up, or what? You've chose the wrong man for a try-on of that sort."
1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Deverbal from try on.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
try-on. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try-on
“try-on.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try-on. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “try-on,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try-on.
Source: try-on on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.