gold brick

A con artist tries to sell a gold brick to a skeptical man on the street.

Definition

1. Noun:

   • A fraudulent item: "gold brick" refers to something that appears valuable or genuine on the surface but is actually worthless or deceptive. This is the primary meaning, especially in American English.
   • A swindle or hoax: It can also denote a deceptive scheme or trick designed to cheat someone out of money or trust.

2. Verb (informal, often used as a compound "to gold-brick"):

   • To shirk or avoid work: In informal American English, "to gold brick" means to pretend to work or to avoid one's responsibilities, often by feigning illness or laziness.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • The antique dealer tried to sell me a gold brick, but I knew it was a fake. (He attempted to sell me an item that only appeared valuable on the surface.)
  • That investment turned out to be a gold brick; we lost all our money. (The investment was a fraudulent scheme.)

• Verb:

  • He's always gold bricking when there's a difficult task to do. (He avoids work by pretending to be busy or ill.)

Advanced Usage

• "to sell a gold brick": to cheat or deceive someone by offering something that seems valuable but is worthless.

  • The con artist sold a gold brick to the unsuspecting tourist. (He tricked the tourist into buying a fake item.)

• "gold brick artist": a person who is skilled at deceiving others or avoiding work.

  • That employee is a gold brick artist; he never does his fair share. (He is an expert at shirking duties.)

Variants and Related Words

• Gold-brick (verb, hyphenated): same as "gold brick" as a verb.
  • He gold-bricked his way through the project. (He avoided real work.)
• Gold-bricker (noun): a person who habitually avoids work or deceives others.
  • The manager fired the gold-bricker for laziness. (The person who shirked work was terminated.)

Synonyms

• Fake: something not genuine; a counterfeit.
• Sham: a thing that is not what it is purported to be; a hoax.
• Swindle: a fraudulent scheme or deception.
• Malingerer: a person who pretends to be ill to avoid work (verb sense).

Phrasal Verbs

• Gold-brick off: to avoid work by pretending to be busy or unwell.
  • He gold-bricked off when the boss was watching. (He pretended to work to escape real duties.)

Related Idioms

• A wolf in sheep's clothing: something harmful or deceptive disguised as harmless or valuable.

  • That deal was a wolf in sheep's clothing, just like a gold brick. (It appeared good but was actually a trick.)

• Sell a bill of goods: to deceive someone by presenting something falsely.

  • They sold him a bill of goods with that gold brick investment. (They tricked him with a fake opportunity.)