take for a ride


take (one) for a ride

1. slang To con, swindle, or deceive one. That get-rich-quick guru took tens of thousands of people for a ride, lining his own pockets with their investments. I can't believe I let that guy take me for a ride like that.2. slang To take one away in a car to be murdered. A: "What should we do about the witness, boss?" B: "Take him for a ride."See also: ride, take

take (something) for a ride

To go for a brief, leisurely outing in a vehicle, especially an automobile. Jenny just got a new car for her birthday, so I think we're going to take it for a ride after school. Grandpa says he's going to let me take the Mustang for a ride if I get a good report card.See also: ride, take

take someone for a ride

 1. Lit. to carry someone about, usually for recreation, in a car, plane, boat, etc. Would you take us for a ride in your boat? Please take me for a ride in your new car. 2. Fig. to deceive someone. You really took those people for a ride. They really believed you. I was taken fora ride on this matter. 3. Fig. to take away and murder a person. (Underworld.) Mr. Big told Mike to take Fred for a ride. The gang leader had said he thought Mike had better take Walter for a ride.See also: ride, take

take for a ride

Slang 1. To deceive or swindle: an author who tried to take his publisher for a ride.2. To transport to a place and kill.See also: ride, take

take (someone) for a ride, to

To play a joke on someone; also, to murder someone. As a euphemism for murder, this term was American underworld slang that became popular with mystery novelists of the 1930s and 1940s. Thus, Eric Ambler wrote (Journey into Fear, 1940), “He was to be ‘taken for a ride.’” In the meaning of playing a trick or deceiving someone, the term is slightly older, being so defined in Dialect Notes in 1925. J. P. McEvoy used this version in Hollywood Girl (1929): “She certainly took him for a ride.”See also: take