Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to ensnare in a confidence tric; thus conycatching, swindling, cheating.

1592		H. Chettle Kind-Harts Dreame F4: The whole towne talks of the cunning man, that indeed had onely connycatcht his Host.
1595		‘A Libell against some Graye’s Inn gentlemen’ in May & Bryson Verse Libel 283: For as they say , / A cunycatching raskall you can play.
1600		J. Day Blind Beggar of Bednall-Green Act III: Look not on me, / Till you have found those that have Cony-catch’t you. [Ibid.] Act IV: Well on this condition you’ll teach me to cony, I am content to lye for you.
1604		Dekker Honest Whore Pt 1 I ii: Why sister do you thinke Ile cunni-catch you, when you are my coosen?
a.1618		J. Harington Epigrams III No. 36: Thus her good wit, their cunning ouer-matcht, / Were not these conycatchers conycatcht?
c.1629		R. Brome City Wit IV ii: Truly, truly, I am Conycatch’d.
1630		Tinker of Turvey 8: Some that knew you had but weake eyes haue fool’d you, out-fac’d you, and Cunny-catch’d you.
1658		R. Brathwait Age for Apes 128: If I grant Protection to another To Conicatch, or to defeat his brother, My shallow Sconce is run on no such Shelfe As to neglect Protection for my selfe.
1822		R. Nares Gloss. (1888) I 189: To cony-catch. To deceive a simple person; to cheat or impose; a cony, or rabbit, being considered a very simple animal. [...] a collective society of sharpers was called a warren, and their dupes rabbit-suckers (that is, young rabbits) [...] At times the gang were bird-catchers, and their prey a gull.
1976		E. Dahlberg Olive of Minerva 143: How is it possible for a dowd to conycatch a seer simply because she has a cranny between her legs?

2. to go out whoring or womanizing; thus cony-catching n., whoring.

1600		Dekker Shoemakers’ Holiday IV iv: I came hither of purpose with shooes to sir Rogers worship, whilst Rose his daughter be coniecatcht by Hauns.
1611		J. Cook Greenes Tu Quoque Scene xix: Tis scarce honest dealing for any man to Conny-catch another mans wife.
1637		T. Nabbes Microcosmus Act V: I have coney-catcht many a poulterers wife, and she hath pluckt my feathers: what I got by the back I spent on the belly.
1654		Mercurius Fumigosus 11 9 Aug. 102: A Fiddling Fellow of this Town, accompanied with a brace of young Tormentors [...] being merrily disposed to learn the Art of Coney-catching, contrived to go a Ferritting with a Gun in a Gentle-mans Warren.
1699		N. Ward London-Spy XI 264: Being almost Drunk, their Brains ran on Coney-Catching, and they must needs ... beg the Ladies good Company.
c.1904		A. Crowley Snowdrops from a Curate’s Garden 31: He was [...] but a worn-out reprobate, a fellow of Fumbler’s Hall, a mere butterfingers at coney-catching!