Why this word is great
THIMBLERIG — [Noun, Verb] A swindling game involving sleight-of-hand with cups and a small object, or the act of cheating someone through such trickery. From thimble (a small cup-like sewing tool) + rig (to manipulate dishonestly). Unlike "shell game" (which trades thimbles for shells but operates on the same principle of misdirection) or "hustle" (a vaguer term for swindling, devoid of the ritualized cup-and-ball choreography), thimblerig is deception distilled to its most theatrical form. It is the glint of a brass thimble catching lamplight as it slides across a grimy table, the practiced flick of a wrist that makes the pea vanish into thin air, the slow dawning in the mark’s eyes as he realizes he never stood a chance—a reminder that the oldest cons are the ones that prey on our stubborn belief in fair play.