# trick

/ˈtɹɪk/ (US) · /tɹˈɪk/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/trick
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. a deception or prank

noun · CEFR B1

something you do to fool someone, either as a joke or to be dishonest.

For teachers: an act or scheme intended to deceive or outwit someone, ranging from harmless pranks to fraudulent swindles.

- The children played a trick on their teacher by hiding her glasses.
- The email was a clever trick designed to steal passwords from unsuspecting employees by mimicking a bank's official website.

### 2. a clever method

noun · CEFR B1

a quick or effective way of doing something difficult.

For teachers: a particular technique or knack that facilitates the efficient completion of a task.

- The trick to making good pasta is using plenty of salt in the water.
- Once you learn the trick of balancing the load, the heavy wheelbarrow becomes much easier to manage on uneven ground.

### 3. magic or performance

noun · CEFR B1

an entertaining action or a piece of magic that looks impossible.

For teachers: a single illusion or feat of skill performed for entertainment, such as by a magician or an acrobat.

- The magician performed a card trick that left the audience silent with wonder.
- The skateboarder spent all afternoon practicing a new trick on the half-pipe before the competition started.

### 4. prostitution client

noun · CEFR C1 · Slang

a person who pays for sex.

For teachers: a customer of a sex worker. Informal and often carries a derogatory or clinical nuance depending on the speaker.

- The police were monitoring the street to identify regular tricks in the area.
- The documentary explored the dangerous lives of women working on the streets and their interactions with various tricks.

### 5. nautical work shift

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a sailor's turn to work at the wheel of a ship.

For teachers: a specific period of duty at the helm of a vessel, typically lasting two hours.

- It was his turn for a trick at the wheel during the storm.
- After a grueling two-hour trick at the helm in heavy seas, the helmsman was finally relieved by the next watch.

### 6. to deceive

verb · CEFR B1

to make someone believe something that is not true.

For teachers: to deceive or outwit someone through a stratagem or artifice. Transitive; frequently used with the preposition 'into'.

- He tricked me into giving him my phone number by pretending to be a classmate.
- The salesman attempted to trick the elderly couple into signing a contract they hadn't fully read.

### 7. unreliable or deceptive

adjective · CEFR B2

something that is likely to fail or break, or something meant to fool you.

For teachers: tending to deceive or fail unexpectedly; often used of body parts or mechanical objects.

- Be careful on the stairs because I have a trick knee that sometimes gives out.
- The magician used a trick deck of cards to ensure he always drew the ace of spades.

## Examples

- The magician performs a card trick.
- The advertisement used a clever trick to make the product look better than it was.
- His only political trick was to promise everything to everyone, a strategy that proved surprisingly effective in the short term but ultimately unsustainable.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.