sell someone a bill of goods, to

sell someone a bill of goods

Fig. to get someone to believe something that isn't true; to deceive someone. Don't pay any attention to what John says. He's just trying to sell you a bill of goods. I'm not selling you a bill of goods. What I say is true.See also: bill, good, of, sell

sell a bill of goods

Deceive, swindle, take unfair advantage of, as in He was just selling you a bill of goods when he said he worked as a secret agent, or Watch out if anyone says he wants to trade bikes with you; he's apt to be selling you a bill of goods . The bill of goods here means "a dishonest offer." [c. 1920] See also: bill, good, of, sell

sell someone a bill of goods

deceive or swindle someone, usually by persuading them to accept something untrue or undesirable. A bill of goods is a consignment of merchandise. 1968 Globe & Mail (Toronto) There was no production bonus…We were sold a bill of goods. See also: bill, good, of, sell, someone

sell a bill of goods

Informal To take unfair advantage of.See also: bill, good, of, sell

sell someone a bill of goods, to

To cheat or defraud someone. A “bill of goods,” in commercial language, is a quantity or consignment of merchandise. Selling it here means persuading someone to accept something undesirable. The term dates from the early twentieth century. The playwright Eugene O’Neill used it in Marco Millions (1924), “Selling a big bill of goods hereabouts, I’ll wager, you old rascals?” Or, in the Toronto Globe and Mail (Feb. 17, 1968), “There was no production bonus . . . we were sold a bill of goods.” See also: bill, of, sell, someone