What does bunkoing mean?
Bunkoing refers to the act of swindling someone — cheating them out of money or property through a confidence trick rather than force. It is the present participle and gerund of the verb 'bunko,' itself a variant of 'bunco,' an American word for a swindle that arose in the mid-to-late nineteenth century. In its heyday, the word appeared frequently in newspaper accounts of con games targeting marks with rigged bets, fake investments, and three-card monte-style schemes, and many American cities maintained dedicated 'bunko squads' within their police departments to combat such fraud. Today the term sounds informal and somewhat old-fashioned, having largely yielded to 'conning,' 'scamming,' and 'defrauding,' but it remains a vivid, evocative choice when describing the classic image of the smooth-talking grifter separating a victim from his savings.
Present participle of 'bunko': to swindle or cheat someone, especially out of money, by means of a confidence trick.
"They spent years bunkoing wealthy widows with promises of guaranteed returns."
Almost always takes a direct object referring to the victim or the money obtained.
The action or practice of perpetrating confidence tricks; swindling considered as an activity.
"Bunkoing was his trade, honed on riverboats and in frontier mining camps."
A 'bunko squad' was once an official police unit in American cities — dedicated entirely to hunting down con artists.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bunkoing
The verb 'bunko' derives from the noun 'bunko,' a variant spelling of 'bunco,' an American English word attested from the mid-nineteenth century meaning a swindle or confidence game. The ultimate origin of 'bunco/bunko' is uncertain, though it is often connected to the Spanish 'banco' ('bank' or 'bench'), as used in gambling contexts — possibly via the card game Monte Bank. The word became widespread during post-Civil War America, when confidence schemes flourished and police forces formed specialized bunko details. The gerund form 'bunkoing' follows standard English inflection.
Related word forms
How bunkoing is actually used
Informal and somewhat dated register; 'bunko' and its inflected forms are less common today than 'bunco' or the broader terms 'con' and 'scam.' The word carries strongly negative connotations of dishonesty and deception. Historically common in American crime reporting of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Easily confused with bunkoing
'Buncoing' refers to exactly the same activity as 'bunkoing' but uses the more common American spelling of the base word, 'bunco'; the meanings are identical.
'Bunkering' means supplying a ship with fuel, whereas 'bunkoing' means swindling someone in a confidence trick.