grift

Meanings

Noun

• A confidence game or swindle.

Verb

• To obtain illegally, as by con game.
• To obtain money illegally.
• To obtain money immorally or through deceitful means.

Origin

• American criminal underworld slang, 1906 (noun), 1915 (verb), alteration of graft, alteration perhaps influenced by similar sounding words, e.g. drift, etc., probably ultimately from Middle Dutch graft (modern Dutch gracht), related to Dutch graven, English grave.