trickster
/ˈtrɪkstə(r)/ (bre, ipa) · [trˈɪkstɚ] /ˈtrɪkstər/ (ame, ipa) · [trˈɪkstɚ] /ˈtrik-stər How to pronounce trickster (audio)/ (ame, mw)
trickster — noun
- trickstersingular
- trickstersplural
1. A person who uses clever tricks to fool, cheat, or play jokes on other people.
A person who uses clever tricks to fool, cheat, or play jokes on other people.
Dmitri lost his savings to a trickster who promised him a cheap apartment in the city centre.
trickster + who-clause describing the deception
Mei-Ling discovered that the man selling watches at the market was a trickster.
There was a well-known trickster in the village who fooled tourists with fake maps.
Kwame played the trickster at camp, hiding everyone's shoes just before dawn.
Hassan was taken in by a trickster on the phone pretending to be from his bank.
- deceiver
broader and more formal; does not imply cleverness or playfulness
- con artist
specifically gains trust before cheating, usually for money; more modern and criminal in tone
- fraudster
purely about financial or legal deception; formal register
- prankster
only for playful, harmless tricks; never for serious deception
- straight shooter
informal; an honest, direct person
用法筆記
Can describe anyone from a harmless prankster to a serious fraudster; surrounding context signals the severity.
常見錯誤
2. A character found in the traditional stories of many cultures who survives by be
A character found in the traditional stories of many cultures who survives by being clever and deceitful, often outwitting gods, animals, or other people.
Anansi the spider is West Africa's best-known trickster, using clever stories to defeat stronger foes.
trickster as cultural archetype: Anansi
Coyote the trickster appears throughout Native American folklore as both a creator and a fool.
Coyote as dual-nature trickster
Loki ranks as the most famous trickster in Norse mythology, constantly causing trouble for the gods.
Raven the trickster stole the sun from a hidden box and set it free in the sky.
The tanuki, a shape-shifting trickster in Japanese folklore, loves playing tricks on travellers at night.
- trickster figure
used in academic writing about folklore; interchangeable with sense 2
用法筆記
Always refers to a character in traditional stories or mythology; never used for a real person who tricks others. Distinguish from sense 1 (PERSON WHO DECEIVES).