mockers, n. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

mockers n.

(Aus.) marked cards.

1919

Mirror (Sydney) 31 Aug. 8/3: Poker players have their ‘strippers,’ where the sides of the cards are faked in such a way that the dealer knows what cards he is dealing to other players. ‘Mockers’ or ‘readers’ are another variation of the game which brings grist to the sharper’s mill.

In phrases

put the mockers on (v.) (also put a/the mock on, put the mocker on, put the mocks on, put the moz on) [? Yid. makkes, ult. Heb. makot, plagues, blows, (evil) visitations. The phr. was poss. orig. used in Aus., but given the ety., there may be a link to 19C London market traders]

to jinx, to put a curse on, to frustrate someone’s plans.

1911		E. Dyson ‘Dukie M’Kenzie’s Dawnce’ in Benno and Some of the Push 33: It’s up t’ me t’ put a mock on that tripester et the ’ay-an’-corn.’.
1938		X. Herbert Capricornia (1939) 434: Comin’ here to put the mocks on us.
1943		Baker Popular Dict. Aus. Sl. (3rd edn) 51: Mocks on, put the, to upset someone’s plans, to spoil a person’s calculations. Also, ‘put the mock on’.
1945		Baker Aus. Lang. 134: put the mocks (or moz) on, to To upset a person’s calculations, to spoil a person’s game.
1949		L. Glassop Lucky Palmer 104: Well, wasn’t I right when I told you I was putting the mocker on us?
1959		W. Hall Long and the Short and the Tall Act I: You think that he’d have second thoughts before he put the mockers on the lot of us?
1968		S. Gore Holy Smoke 56: It’s no good whipping the cat if a man’s such a dill as to come the double on anyone – like tryin’ to scale the trammie for your fare – and then gets the mockers put on him. You know, like being jinxed?
1979		F. Norman Too Many Crooks Spoil the Caper 126: I didn’t like the way she said ‘friend’ – it put the mockers on my proposal.
1984		A. Sayle Train to Hell 147: At first she thought the strike would put the mockers on the filming.
1994		J. O’Connor Secret World of the Irish Male (1995) 214: Unfortunately, Campos then saves a John Sheridan shot, which puts the mockers on us again.
2002		J. Cameron Hell on Hoe Street 105: Noreen my missis she put the mockers on that [i.e. crime].
2006		B. Matthews Intractable [ebook] ‘Don’t put the mockers on my son [...] ‘There’s no way he will end up in jail’.
2017		Twitter 18 Feb. 🌐 I’m waiting for you and your gang to stop putting the mockers on Corbyn.