English Dictionary

Definition of “dupe”

dupe (djuːp Pronunciation for dupe

Definitions

noun

  1. a person who is easily deceived
  2. a person who unwittingly serves as the tool of another person or power

verb

  1. tr to deceive, esp by trickery; make a dupe or tool of; cheat; fool

Derived Forms

ˈdupable adjective
ˌdupaˈbility noun
ˈduper noun
ˈdupery noun

Word Origin

C17: from French, from Old French duppe, contraction of de huppe of (a) hoopoe (from Latin upupa); from the bird's reputation for extreme stupidity

Synonyms

View thesaurus entry
= puppet, tool, instrument, pawn, stooge, cat's-paw
= deceive, trick, cheat, con, kid, sting, rip off, hoax, defraud, beguile, gull, delude, swindle, outwit, bamboozle, hoodwink, take for a ride, pull a fast one on, cozen, scam

Translations for 'dupe'

  • British English: dupe If a person dupes you, they trick you into doing something or into believing something which is not true. VERB...a plot to dupe stamp collectors into buying fake rarities.
  • Brazilian Portuguese: enganar
  • Chinese: 欺骗欺骗騙
  • European Spanish: engañar
  • French: duper
  • German: betrügen
  • Italian: raggirare
  • Japanese: だます
  • Korean: 속이다
  • Portuguese: enganar
  • Spanish: engañar
  • British English: dupe A dupe is someone who is tricked by someone else. NOUNHe becomes an innocent dupe in a political scandal.
  • Brazilian Portuguese: otário otária
  • Chinese: 冤大头冤大头<TRAD>頭</TRAD>騙
  • European Spanish: víctima
  • French: dupe
  • German: Betrogene Betrogener
  • Italian: vittima di un raggiro
  • Japanese: かも
  • Korean: 사기 당한 사람
  • Portuguese: otário otária
  • Spanish: víctima

Example Sentences Including 'dupe'

'The big question now ', says one recent report,'is was Bush duped himself, or did he dupe the people into believing war was necessary?
Spiked (2003)
Dawes - a man of his intelligence was unlikely to be a dupe , even though well-meaning: an agent, then.
Brandon, Ruth Left, Right and Centre
I CAN'T believe the sly lengths Kenneth went to in his effort to dupe people into believing he couldn't walk.
Sun, News of the World (2001)
In one script last year, a murderer tried to dupe authorities into believing his victims had been killed in the terrorist attacks.
Globe and Mail (2003)
New Zealand passports also helped foreign students dupe academic institutions about their citizenship to avoid paying high fees.
New Zealand Herald (2003)
Not just because of the rising rate of child obesity but because it is so patently wrong to dupe parents in this way.
Times, Sunday Times (2004)
She was already Silvester's mistress, a compliant, rather dim dupe , ideal for MI5's purposes.
Adam, Paul A Nasty Dose of Death
Their egregious friendliness finally managed to dupe me, sweetly bolstering my self-esteem.
Edited by Robin Robertson MORTIFICATION: Writers' Stories of their Public Shame (2003)
Was Komarov a target, a dupe , or a conspirator of some sort?
Mark Burnell CHAMELEON (2002)

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