con-

1.
variant of com- before a consonant (except b, h, l, p, r) and, by assimilation, before n: convene; condone; connection.
Origin
< Latin

Con.

1.
Conformist.
2.
Consul.

con.

1.
concerto.
2.
conclusion.
3.
connection.
4.
consolidated.
5.
consul.
6.
continued.
7.
against.
Origin
< Latin contrā

con1

[kon] /kɒn/
adverb
1.
against a proposition, opinion, etc.:
arguments pro and con.
noun
2.
the argument, position, arguer, or voter against something.
Compare pro1 .
Origin
1575-85; short for Latin contrā in opposition, against

con2

[kon] /kɒn/
verb (used with object), conned, conning.
1.
to learn; study; peruse or examine carefully.
2.
to commit to memory.
Origin
before 1000; Middle English cunnen, Old English cunnan variant of can1 in sense “become acquainted with, learn to know”

con3

[kon] /kɒn/
verb (used with object), conned, conning.
1.
to direct the steering of (a ship).
noun
2.
the station of the person who cons.
3.
the act of conning.
Also, conn.
Origin
1350-1400; earlier cond, apocopated variant of Middle English condie, condue < Middle French cond(u)ire < Latin condūcere to conduct

con4

[kon] /kɒn/
adjective
1.
involving abuse of confidence:
a con trick.
verb (used with object), conned, conning.
2.
to swindle; trick:
That crook conned me out of all my savings.
3.
to persuade by deception, cajolery, etc.
noun
4.
a confidence game or swindle.
5.
a lie, exaggeration, or glib self-serving talk:
He had a dozen different cons for getting out of paying traffic tickets.
Origin
1895-1900, Americanism; by shortening of confidence

con5

[kon] /kɒn/
noun, Slang.
1.
a convict.
Origin
1715-25; by shortening

con6

[kon] /kɒn/
verb (used with object), conned, conning. British Dialect
1.
to strike, hit, or rap (something or someone).
2.
to hammer (a nail or peg).
3.
to beat or thrash a person with the hands or a weapon.
Origin
1890-95; perhaps akin to French cognée hatchet, cogner to knock in, drive (a nail) home
Examples from the web for con
  • Some of these guys could con a doctor into giving them sleeping pills.
  • Most foreigners are not out to con you-and even their oddest gestures are usually acts of hospitality.
  • Gangs and con artists also prey on easy targets such as foreigners, drunks, and the homeless.
  • What you never knew about casinos and the cons who con them.
  • Old-school café specializes in churros con chocolate.
  • Here, you can get the world-famous chocolate con churros.
  • The biggest con is that the budget agency-wide is arbitrary and subject to political winds.
  • The real point is that the notion of electronic devices protecting the environment is one of the biggest con-jobs of our age.
  • Therefore being valued as faculty may also include who can be the biggest operator con-artist in the nanny-state.
  • It's only when they see the non-standards you hold yourselves to that they begin to suspect that you're working a con.
British Dictionary definitions for con

con1

/kɒn/
noun
1.
  1. short for confidence trick
  2. (as modifier): con man
verb cons, conning, conned
2.
(transitive) to swindle or defraud
Word Origin
C19: from confidence

con2

/kɒn/
noun (usually pl)
1.
an argument or vote against a proposal, motion, etc
2.
a person who argues or votes against a proposal, motion, etc
Compare pro1 See also pros and cons
Word Origin
from Latin contrā against, opposed to

con3

/kɒn/
noun
1.
(slang) short for convict

con4

/kɒn/
verb cons, conns, conning, conned
1.
(transitive) to direct the steering of (a vessel)
noun
2.
the place where a person who cons a vessel is stationed
Word Origin
C17 cun, from earlier condien to guide, from Old French conduire, from Latin condūcere; see conduct

con5

/kɒn/
verb cons, conning, conned
1.
(transitive) (archaic) to study attentively or learn (esp in the phrase con by rote)
Word Origin
C15: variant of can1 in the sense: to come to know

con6

/kɒn/
preposition
1.
(music) with
Word Origin
Italian

con-

prefix
1.
a variant of com-

Con.

abbreviation
1.
Conservative
Word Origin and History for con
n.

"negation" (mainly in pro and con), 1570s, short for Latin contra "against" (see contra).

"study," early 15c., from Old English cunnan "to know, know how" (see can (v.1)).

a slang or colloquial shortening of various nouns beginning in con-, e.g., from the 19th century, confidant, conundrum, conformist, convict, contract, and from the 20th century, conductor, conservative.

adj.

"swindling," 1889, American English, from confidence man (1849), from the many scams in which the victim is induced to hand over money as a token of confidence. Confidence with a sense of "assurance based on insufficient grounds" dates from 1590s.

v.

"to guide ships," 1620s, from French conduire "to conduct, lead, guide" (10c.), from Latin conducere (see conduce). Related: Conned; conning.

"to swindle," 1896, from con (adj.). Related: Conned; conning.

con-

word-forming element meaning "together, with," sometimes merely intensive; the form of com- used in Latin before consonants except -b-, -p-, -l-, -m-, or -r-. In native English formations, co- tends to be used where Latin would use con- (e.g. costar).

con in Medicine

con- pref.
Variant of com-.

Slang definitions & phrases for con

con 1

noun

A convict or former convict; prison inmate: You're a ''con,'' you've no rights (1893+)


con 2

noun
  1. scam: It's a clever con and you're a greedy rat
  2. A dishonest sort of persuasion; put-on: a slick young man with a line of deferential con (1900s+)
verb
  1. To swindle; work a confidence game: We conned the old fart out of three big ones (1896+)
  2. : He conned her into thinking he'd marry her

con in Technology


[SF fandom] A science-fiction convention. Not used of other sorts of conventions, such as professional meetings. This term, unlike many others of SF-fan slang, is widely recognised even by hackers who aren't fans. "We'd been corresponding on the net for months, then we met face-to-face at a con."
[Jargon File]

Related Abbreviations for con

con

  1. confidence game
  2. convict

CON

certificate of need

con.

  1. concerto
  2. conclusion
  3. Latin conjunx (wife)
  4. connection
  5. consolidate
  6. consul
  7. continued
  8. Latin contra (against)
  9. convention

Con.

Congo