Join two wayward radio hosts on A Way With Words, the call-in radio show about writing, speaking, slang, old sayings, and more.
Catchword for “alibi game”
Catchword: alibi game
Filed Under: ,
Part of Speech: n.
Quotation: Carnys call these “alibi games,” because the operator uses a long litany of excuses to keep the mark from giving up in disgust, and encouraging him to dig more money out of his wallet and try “just one more time” to win a stuffed animal that his girlfriend doesn’t even really want.
Article or Document Title:
“Rigged carny game” (URL)
Author:
Mark Frauenfelder
Article, Document, Publication, Web Site:
Boing Boing
Date of Publication:
Aug. 27, 2006
This catchword has yet to be researched.
Posted 29 Aug 06 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Leave a comment, which must be approved by the moderator before it will appear. Courtesy matters!

Keep in mind that we're interested in terms that are not well-covered in mainstream dictionaries, or not covered at all. A mass of unexamined Google hits counts for nothing, but an early use of the term you've found in a book or periodical is very useful. A term does not have to be new to be recorded here, it merely needs to be worthy of more attention.
Name (mandatory):

Email (mandatory):

Location (optional):

Your Web Site (optional):

Remember my personal information

Notify me, by email, of follow-up comments.

Recent Catchwords
park v. (5/16)
whale eye n. (5/16)
water buffalo n. (5/16)
Churchill n. (5/15)
moondust n. (5/15)
mouse type n. (5/14)
hung up adj. (5/14)
sideways market n. (5/14)
Bristol dust n. (5/14)
booth turnaround n. (5/14)
YAWN n. (5/13)
doodlesocking n. (5/13)
job and knock n. (5/13)
radwaste n. (5/12)
meat without feet n. (5/12)
night-out money n. (5/12)
podbusting n. (5/12)
short-and-distort n. (5/12)
yoging n. (5/12)
nightstand Buddhist n. (5/9)
 More catchwords...
Sponsored links:
Car Reviews
Used Cars
Lexicographer's Rules
A hearty endorsement of shout quotes: scare quotes used for emphasis (5/14)
How to buy a dictionary (4/29)
Jinx and padiddle: games we play (4/16)
Saying it wrong on purpose (4/1)
Nicknames from the Underground: Busharraf, Chillary, and Killadelphia (3/19)
New slang unpacked (3/4)
UPDATED: Crosswords in Black and White (3/3)
Find me in American Way Magazine (3/3)
Recent catchwords: read-alike, violin hickey, throw a Porsche at someone, Q-tip cruise, 1-800 car (2/28)
The Tell-All of the Century: Snitching Slang (2/19)
 More blog entries...
Find A Word  »
 A   B   C   D   E 
 F   G   H   I   J 
 K   L   M   N   O 
 P   Q   R   S   T 
 U   V   W   X   Y 
 Z   0-9 
Search
Search Site

Google Site Search
New Comments
GW commented on güey (5/16)
Jak King commented on hardening off (5/16)
Jay DeKing commented on hardening off (5/15)
C.L.Mangles commented on job and knock (5/13)
Richard William Walker commented on cat-claw (5/12)
Thomas commented on cat-claw (5/12)
Richard William Walker commented on cat-claw (5/12)
Rock-hound commented on fobbit (5/12)
chris commented on fobbit (5/12)
Driver Joe commented on brown gas (5/11)
Jan commented on tom-walkers (5/11)
Jak King commented on nightstand Buddhist (5/11)
Karl Benghauser commented on jingle mail (5/10)
Thomas commented on cat-claw (5/10)
Richard William Walker commented on cat-claw (5/10)
Subscribe to the RSS feed. • Subscribe to the mailing list. • Browse the archive. • Add to Technorati Favorites. • © 1999-2008 by Grant Barrett, Double-Tongued Dictionary, New York City.