Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

grift

/ɡɹɪft/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.28 in modern English

Syllables: grift
IPA: /ɡɹɪft/

9

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

1

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A confidence game or swindle.

American usage; Slang

verb

To obtain illegally, as by con game.

American usage; Slang; Transitive verb

verb

To obtain money illegally.

American usage; Intransitive verb; Slang

verb

To obtain money immorally or through deceitful means.

American usage; Intransitive verb; Slang

Example Sentences

"Hey, what's the grift? What are you trying to pull?"
"‘Sounds like he’s trying to stretch out his grift for as long as possible,’ Gentle said. ‘Taking as much from his followers as he can before it falls apart.’"

Etymology

American criminal underworld slang, 1906 (noun), 1915 (verb), alteration of graft (“corruption, illicit profit through corrupt means, bribe, one's occupation”), alteration perhaps influenced by similar sounding words, e.g. drift, etc., probably ultimately from Middle Dutch graft (“digging, ditch, canal, trench”) (modern Dutch gracht), related to Dutch graven (“to dig”), English grave (“to dig”).

Word Breakdown

Root: graft

Usage

Inflected Forms

grifts (plural) grifts (present, singular) grifting (participle, present) grifted (participle, past) grifted (past)

Derived Forms

griftable grifter shopgrift

Synonyms

deception imposition hype deceit dupery fiddle fetch hocus-pocus jugglery legerdemain list mislead

Rhymes With

fifth gift shift lift 5th swift drift get the drift rift thrift adrift sift

Questions

How do you pronounce grift?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɡɹɪft/.
What does grift mean?: A confidence game or swindle.
Where does grift come from?: American criminal underworld slang, 1906 (noun), 1915 (verb), alteration of graft (“corruption, illicit profit through corrupt means, bribe, one's occupation”), alteration perhaps influenced by similar sounding words, e.g. drift, etc., probably ultimately from Middle Dutch graft (“digging, ditch, canal, trench”) (modern Dutch gracht), related to Dutch graven (“to dig”), English grave (“to dig”).

How to pronounce grift

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “grift”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ɡɹɪft/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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