Etymologically
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bamboozle

Etymology and origin of the English word bamboozle

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /bæmˈbuː.zl̩/ (UK); /bæmˈbu.zl̩/ (US)[1]

Etymology

Of unknown or uncertain origin;[2][3][4][5][6] it began as a slang or cant word.[4] Barnhart compares Scottish bumbaze, bombaze “to confuse”, perhaps from bombase “to pad with cotton” and so related to bombast.[5][4] Etymonline also mentions French embabouiner “to make a fool (literally a baboon) of”, and Wedgwood's suggestion of Italian bambolo “a babe”.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

To deceive by trickery, to hoax or impose on someone (1703).[7][3][5][4] A noun meaning “a trick, a hoax” is recorded in the same year.[7][4]

Semantic evolution

From the start the word was used both of practising trickery in general and of tricking a particular person.[7] By 1712 it had also come to mean “to mystify, perplex”,[7] a sense in which Merriam-Webster gives the example of a quarterback confused by an unexpected defence.[3] Phrases like bamboozle into (1716) describe persuading someone by trickery.[7][6]

Timeline

  • 1703 – to deceive by trickery; also as a noun, “a hoax”.[7][3][5]
  • 1712 – to mystify or perplex.[7]
  • 1716 – bamboozle away, bamboozle into.[7]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To deceive or cheat by trickery, flattery or underhanded methods; to hoodwink.
  2. To confuse, perplex or thoroughly throw off.
  3. To practise trickery.

Word family

  • bamboozlement
  • bamboozler

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Bamboozle.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/bamboozle. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·