What it means
To palm something off is to dump it on someone else by dressing it up like it's decent when it really isn't. Could be a dodgy item, a useless excuse, or a rubbish task nobody wants near them. It's got that sneaky little sleight-of-hand energy, all cheek and misdirection while someone else gets lumbered with it.
Usage examples
"They tried to palm off the wonky table on us, but we spotted it straight away."
"He palmed off his old broken phone on his little brother and called it a gift."
"The garage tried to palm off a knackered battery as brand new, good job my brother in law actually knows cars."
"Don't let them palm off the broken display model on you, ask for one still sealed in the box."
"She tried to palm off that cracked Airfryer on Facebook Marketplace like it was barely used."
Where it comes from
It comes from the older verb palm, used for hiding something in your hand, especially in magic tricks and card cheating. By the 1800s, palm off had spread into everyday English for passing something off by stealth or trickery, usually while acting like the thing was perfectly sound.
