TÄUSCHUNG & BETRUG

jemand hat mich/ihn/sie/euch reingelegt/verarscht/veräppelt/gelinkt = he threw me a curve/curveball; a dodgy/devious real estate agent took him for a ride; a conman/a grifter did me out/cheated me out/scammed me out of my money; the company got conned/chiseled by a gang of scammers; he did the dirty on me; I’ve been had/set up/duped/led up or down the garden path; the TV mc/host tried to trip up the politician when he asked him a very complex question; he/she was sold a pup; students sort of like faking each other out; some rip-off artist conned him/fucked him over (vulgar); the public got shortchanged at the concert when the popstar left the show after a very brief performance; illegal migrants are often exploited for gains; he got screwed (slightly vulgar)/shafted by some smart-ass car dealer/salesman; they did a snow job on my best friend; some people are easily conned into/suckered into a get-rich-quick scheme/scam; they are punching below the belt; he just played a prank on his wife; there are always people being deceived/ hoodwinked in the big cities; teenagers sometimes pull the wool over their parents’ eyes when they want to stay out late at night; he was trying to milk the situation; he mugged me off 

Versuchst du, mich zu verarschen? = don’t come the raw prawn/uncooked crustacean with me, mate (AUS idiom)

Versuchst du mich reinzulegen (verbal) =  Are you trying to trip me up?

man wird abgezockt/gelackmeiert; das war der reinste Nepp = that insurance agent is trying to rip you off/to shortchange you; the car dealer took them for a ride/to the cleaners; innocent people are constantly being conned/stung/scammed/shafted/fleeced by unscrupulous wheeler-dealers/ con-artists; the deal was unfair/one-sided; that was a blatant attempt to bleed/milk him dry; the phone call was a hoax/scare; we got soaked/ripped off/gouged yesterday in/at the restaurant; we ended up paying an exorbitant/ inordinate amount for the concert tickets; sometimes you pay through the nose when you stay in a luxury hotel; this is daylight/highway robbery; always beware of any form of racket /dodgy/cunning scheme/get-rich scam/ruse; he got fobbed off with false excuses; that was a giant con;  company has been/is accused of price gouging;  rich investor was scammed out of 100 million dollars by slick conman/trickster; the guy who tried to con you out of your money has a history of engaging in dishonest conduct, according to police records; watch out/keep your eyes peeled  manche Leute sind jenseits von Gut und Böse = gullible people believe almost everything politicians/preachers/conmen say 

mein Onkel hat sich vom Schwindler abzocken lassen = my uncle got ripped off/ screwed up  by the con-artist  

nicht abzocken lassen = don't get ripped off/conned; don’t get tangled up with shifty/dodgy con-men/wheeler-dealers 

das ist eine Mogelpackung (im Sinne von einer Packung/Dose, die nun weniger Inhalt hat als früher, aber wofür der Verbraucher noch immer den gleichen Preis zahlt) = customers are being shortchanged (i.e., products are now being sold with less items/quantity for the same price as before)   

Willst du/wollen Sie mich verarschen? = Are you kidding (stress) me? Are you trying to bullshit me?  Come on/get off, stop that bullshit/ bull/crap/nonsense! Are you trying to diss me? Are you putting me on? Don’t give me that!; what you’re saying is a total fabrication   

sie haben es nicht hingenommen = the decision to hike ticket prices did not go down/sit well with the fans; slapping an environmental levy on mining operators won’t wash/fly with the corporate world 

damit lasse ich mich nicht abspeisen = your explanation is too farfetched; you/they won’t get away with this 

das lasse ich mir nicht gefallen/nicht bieten/nicht auf mir sitzen; das nehme ich ihm/ihr nicht ab = I’m not buying this hype/this bullshit/ this BS/this crap/this nonsense; no way am I going to put up with/stand for/tolerate this bullshit; (name of critisized person) hits back at (name of his/ her detractors); I won’t take this innuendo/offense lying down; I won’t cop it/this sledge anymore (AUS); this is simply not on; this doesn’t sit well with me; I’m not going to (gonna) put up with this shit /crap!; this time around I won’t let it slide; I won’t bow to his bullying/demands; I’m not putting up with that bullshit/nonsense; nothing could be further from the truth/reality; you can't escape the reality that this is a far cry from the truth 

dies kann ich nicht mehr hinnehmen, eine (schnelle) Lösung muss her = I can’t stand/stomach this any longer, something’s gotta (got to) give  

Keine Ausrede! Das zieht nicht = this/it won’t wash; quit fumbling around/fumbling over for excuses, there’s no way around it; we know him, he always ducks and weaves around burning questions 

jemanden übers Ohr hauen/nach allen Regeln der Kunst austricksen = the singer got conned/shafted by his manager; local swindlers always try to pull a swiftie on innocent tourists; older folks are sitting ducks for murky/shady financial deals/schemes; the salesman used every trick in the book to sell them the dilapidaded car/the ramshackle house; tourists are often sitting ducks for local thieves 

er wurde abgezockt, € 1000 sind von seinem Bankkonto abgehoben worden = he got scammed, 1000 US dollars get wiped from his bank account         

er/sie führt was im Schilde = he/she is up to no good 

das sollte nur ein Schildbürgerstreich sein = that was just supposed to be a prank/hoax 

Schindluder treiben = a lot of people wreak havoc with their bodies when they stop exercising; he gets shortchanged/cheapshotted/milked /screwed by his supervisor every time he agrees to work long hours for no pay  

sie hat mir einen Bärendienst erwiesen =  she did me in/did me a disservice when she told the cops I was drinking before driving the car

das war Abzocke = that was a scam/a financial shark bite; they are trying to screw us (be reminded that depending on the context the word “screw” may have a vulgar connotation); the conman cheated the old lady out of her whole savings/money   

irgendwie haben sie alle etwas auf dem Kerbholz/Dreck am Stecken = somehow they all have a bad rap; he doesn’t have a clean slate/ record 

in dieser Stadt gibt es überall Abzocker = there are too many con artists/con men/con women/grifters/scammers/rip-off artists/rip-off merchants/crooks in this town

ihr wird ein Mord/Delikt, den/das sie nicht begangen hat,  in die Schuhe geschoben = she got framed up for a murder/a violation/a deed she didn’t commit

ein paar Typen haben versucht, ihn reinzulegen, aber es hat nicht geklappt = a few smart guys tried to put one over on him, but no dice; they tried to pull a fast one on him

für ihn/sie war/gab es wieder Fehlanzeige = he/she drew a blank again

sie/er ist jemandem auf den Leim gegangen = she fell for some phony hype/was taken to the cleaners; my grandfather fell for a fund-raising scam

er wurde über den Tisch gezogen = he was taken for a ride; he was led up/down the garden path

Freunde haben ihm ans Bein gepinkelt = he got screwed/fucked over (vulgar) by friends

der Milchbauer wurde vom großen Konzern abgezockt = the dairy farmer was milked dry by the large corporation

Was soll das? = I mean, seriously ...; (Are) you trying to fool me/diss me? Get out of here!

Willst du mich für dumm verkaufen?  = Are you bullshitting me?

er/sie wurde/n für dumm verkauft = he got shortchanged by the salesman; the customers didn’t get the deal they had signed up for

Kommentar einer Person, nachdem man versucht hat, sie/ihn reinzulegen = Nice try! Just a blatant try-on!

er wollte mir eins auswischen/in die Suppe spucken = he wanted to rain on my parade; she did a number on her boyfriend when she went to the party with a friend of his; the actor threw the audience a curve/curveball when he said he couldn’t make it for the awards ceremony 

ein Geschmäckle wittern/haben = this entire scheme reeks/scents of graft/corruption; although he swore he had nothing to do with the robbery I can still smell a rat; the ex-minister still feeds off his political links in order to obtain lucrative consulting assignments

er wurde bloßgestellt = his/her number is up

Trickbetrüger/Hochstapler wird entlarvt nachdem er sich angeblich mit Lug und Trug in einem Unternehmen hochgearbeitet hat = the fake executive is alleged to have schemed and conned his way up the ranks of the corporation

Ende Gelände mit dem Spielchen = the jig/game is up  

leichtgläubige Personen werden leicht abgezockt/reingelegt = gullible/dupable persons are easy marks for con-men/crooks/swindlers/ cheaters; that guy is a pushover/a sucker (for punishment)

in manchen Großstädten sind Touristen leichte Beute für Taschendiebe = in some large cities tourists are fair game for pickpockets

sie wurde von dem Verkäufer irregeführt = she got a bum steer from the sales rep  

Wer ist hier der Depp/Dumme? = So, who is the fall guy/scapegoat/patsy? Who was left holding the bag/carrying the can?  

er lässt sich nicht leicht reinlegen = you can’t deceive him easily, he’s up to snuff

es war alles nur Augenwischerei, was uns das Management erzählt/aufgetischt hat  =  it was all smoke and mirrors/ajust a smokescreen   what management told us about the company’s dire financial predicament   

Firma versucht ihre dramatische finanzielle Lage zu vertuschen/kaschieren/übertünchen/hinwegzutäuschen =  corporation attempts to paper over/gloss over/mask its serious/poor financial situation  

er hat ein paar Nebelkerzen in die Diskussion geworfen = he just threw a (few) red herring(s) into the discussion

sie haben reichlich Nebelkerzen geworfen, um ihre wahren Absichten zu verschleiern; es ist alles nur Augenwischerei = that was just a smokescreen to conceal their true intentions; don’t trust them, it’s all window dressing/make-believe; someone finally called their bluff 

Politiker werfen hin und wieder Nebelkerzen, um von Themen abzulenken, über die sie nicht sprechen wollen =  politicians use red herrings as a means to divert attention from issues they do not want to talk about 

das ist/war Etikettenschwindel = the con man/artist sold him a pup/took him for a ride; unfortunately we ended up buying a pig in a poke; the sales rep did his utmost to pull the wool over my eyes when he tried to sell me a dilapidaded car; that was a con-job/smokescreen; this is like putting lipstick on a pig

die Polizei/er hat ein Auge zugedrückt  = some law enforcement officers frequently look the other way and pretend not to see when petty violations are committed; the department store detective turned/cast a blind eye to the lady who stole a few video movies; he gave him a break/got him off the hook; when I made a big blunder/mistake my boss just blinked at it 

er konnte noch den Kopf aus der Schlinge ziehen = he managed to get off the hook/to beat the rap  

er hat mich gerettet = he saved the day/my bacon/my ass (slightly vulgar)

sie kann sich (fast) alles erlauben = that lady usually gets away with murder because she is so cute/charming

Kleinganove/Person er ist mit einem blauen Auge davongekommen = that was a close call; the petty thief got caught stealing food from the supermarket but the police/law enforcement officer let him off the hook/saved his ass because he was just hungry; oh boy, that was a close call; we just made it by the skin of our teeth; he just got away with murder; they just squeaked by/managed to beat the rap 

jemand (ein Petzer) hat mich verraten/verpetzt =  somebody (a snitch/stool pidgeon) snitched/ squealed on me; he (a dobber) dobbed me in (AUS)