means A clever or deceptive act meant to fool, surprise, or entertain someone — or a skillful feat that looks harder than it is.

from From the Old North French 'trique,' meaning a cheat or deception, related to a verb meaning to deceive or beguile. It crept into English in the 1400s and quickly multiplied: a cardsharp's trick, a magician's trick, a dog's trick, and eventually the 'tricks of the trade.' The sense of a knack or sleight has always shadowed the sense of a swindle — two faces of the same cunning hand.