never give a sucker an even break
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Take advantage of someone who is naive or vulnerable
Literally: give someone a fair chance, but with ironic intent
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Sources & notes
Listed on Wikipedia “List of proverbial phrases” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “never give a sucker an even break” mean?
Take advantage of someone who is naive or vulnerable Literally: give someone a fair chance, but with ironic intent
Is “never give a sucker an even break” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.