Library / English Dictionary

GOLDBRICK

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Anything that is supposed to be valuable but turns out to be worthless

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("goldbrick" is a kind of...):

dupery; fraud; fraudulence; hoax; humbug; put-on (something intended to deceive; deliberate trickery intended to gain an advantage)

Domain usage:

figure; figure of speech; image; trope (language used in a figurative or nonliteral sense)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A brick-shaped block that looks like gold but is not

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("goldbrick" is a kind of...):

block; cube (a three-dimensional shape with six square or rectangular sides)

Sense 3

Meaning:

An idle worthless person

Synonyms:

goldbrick; good-for-naught; good-for-nothing; goof-off; ne'er-do-well; no-account

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("goldbrick" is a kind of...):

bum; do-nothing; idler; layabout; loafer (person who does no work)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A soldier who performs his duties without proper care or effort

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("goldbrick" is a kind of...):

shirker; slacker (a person who shirks his work or duty (especially one who tries to evade military service in wartime))

soldier (an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Avoid (one's assigned duties)

Example:

The derelict soldier shirked his duties

Synonyms:

fiddle; goldbrick; shirk; shrink from

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "goldbrick" is one way to...):

avoid (refrain from doing something)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "goldbrick"):

scrimshank (British military language: avoid work)

malinger; skulk (avoid responsibilities and duties, e.g., by pretending to be ill)

slack (avoid responsibilities and work, be idle)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

goldbricking (the evasion of work or duty)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Deprive of by deceit

Example:

She defrauded the customers who trusted her

Synonyms:

bunco; con; defraud; diddle; goldbrick; hornswoggle; mulct; nobble; rook; scam; short-change; swindle; victimize

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "goldbrick" is one way to...):

cheat; chisel; rip off (deprive somebody of something by deceit)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "goldbrick"):

short; short-change (cheat someone by not returning him enough money)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s somebody PP

Credits