sell wolf tickets
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.10 in modern English
27
Scrabble Score
15
Letters
5
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To make threats or boasts, especially if empty and/or if made to intimidate someone.
Example Sentences
- "It's plenty people selling wolf tickets, you know."
- "I stood there in silence listening to Ollie build himself up by selling wolf tickets about what he planned to do to me."
- "The two of them played about four hands of spades, each of which was close but as usual, Yvonne won. Of course, she had to sell wolf tickets after the win. "The next time you come over Mchael, I'll let you win." "Let me win?" he asked incredulously."
- "A lot of selling of wolf tickets but never any blood. I wish they would kill one of themselves so there would be some peace around here."
- "Dock has never fired a gun at anyone. He may possibly have sold a reporter a handful of wolf tickets."
Etymology
From wolf ticket/woof ticket, from woofing (“idly boasting”), from woofing (“(emptily/harmlessly) barking like a dog”). Woof ticket/wolf ticket is attested since the 1960s.