Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to trick, to deceive, to steal from.

1695		Congreve Love for Love IV i: I should have been finely fobbed indeed, very finely fobbed.
1700		Congreve Way of the World I ii: There were items of such a treaty being in embryo; and if it should come to life, poor Mirabell would be in some sort unfortunately fobbed, i’faith.
1709		Cibber Rival Fools IV i: cun.: We’ll fob him, Sir, here’s my Hand on’t. sim.: Sir, no Person alive wou’d be more transported to see him well fobb’d.
1730		K. O’Hara Tom Thumb I iv: Am I thus fobb’d?
1754		Foote Knights in Works (1799) I 86: Master Jenkins, you have fobb’d me finely.
1775		Sheridan Rivals (1776) III iii: Thus, like garden-trees, they seldom show fruit, till time has fobbed them of the more specious blossom.
1785		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1794		‘Peter Pindar’ ‘A Rowland for an Oliver’ Works (1794) II 432: To use a cant phrase, weve been finely fobb’d, Indeed, have very dextrously been robb’d.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1828		R.M. Bird City Looking Glass II i: He had fobbed my father.
1842		S. Lover Handy Andy 37: The gentlemen in black silk stockings, with gold-headed canes, have been fobbing fees for three weeks.
1853		T. Haliburton Sam Slick’s Wise Saws I 51: He fobbed it from Boswell’s ‘Life of Johnson’.
1895		Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict. 30: Fob, to pocket or steal.

2. to place in one’s fob pocket.

1851		‘How Sally Hooter Got Snake-Bit’ in T.A. Burke Polly Peablossom’s Wedding 67: Having sold his crop of cotton an’ fobbed the ‘tin,’ forth sallied Mike with a pocket full of rocks, an’ bent on a bit of a spree.
1866		Sportsman 11 Sept. 2/1: Notes on News [...] 50,000 francs went to fee his Yankee legal advisers, and 20,000 francs were fobbed his interpreter.
1900		Bulletin (Sydney) 9 June 24/2: ‘Here’s yer half jim, Mr. Wallace. I put my last shirt button on Carbine when I see you had confidence in him.’ Donald grinned meekly, but fobbed the half sov.

3. (US Und.) to steal from a fob pocket.

[1772		Bridges Burlesque Homer (3rd edn) 480: When they had done the job of jobs, / They durst not stay to pick their fobs].
1889–90		Barrère & Leland Dict. of Sl., Jargon and Cant.
1903		J. Flynt Rise of Roderick Clowd 65: He declared defiantly that he would learn to ‘fob’ as well as anybody.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).

4. (UK und.) a synon. for ring dropping n. (1)