shell game /ˈSHel ˌɡām/ nounNORTH AMERICAN a game involving sleight of hand, in which three inverted cups or nutshells are moved about, and contestants must spot which is the one with a pea or other object underneath. a deceptive and evasive action or ploy, especially a political one. plural noun: shell games "officials played a shell game by loading prisoners onto buses during population counts at the jail"