short con
Fast street scam
A short con is a swindle completed quickly, usually in a single encounter, requiring minimal setup and yielding a modest score.
The classic short cons—three-card monte, the shell game, the pigeon drop—can be run on a street corner with pocket change as seed money.
Contrast with the long con, which develops over weeks or months and targets larger sums: He didn't have the patience for a long con, so he stuck to short cons and kept moving.
- scamDishonest money-making scheme
- hustleEnergetic, aggressive action
- swindleDeception for financial gain
- markVisible impression or sign
- confidenceSelf-assurance or trust
confidence trick · trick · shell game · three-card monte · flimflam · clip joint · racket · bunco · sting · sucker · easy target · patsy · grifter · sleight · fast talk · smooth talker · street hustle · quick buck
- consscam, swindle, grift, hustle, sting
- street consshell game, three card monte, three-card monte, thimblerig, cups and balls
- deceptionslie, lies, lying, deceit, decoy
short conlong con
Protracted, elaborate swindle
long game · investment scam · Ponzi scheme · romance scam · confidence game
short, con, shorter, shortest, shorten, shortened, shortening, shortly, shortness