hoax

verb

\ ˈhōks

hoaxed; hoaxing; hoaxes

Definition of hoax

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

: to trick into believing or accepting as genuine something false and often preposterous were hoaxed by the website

hoax

noun

Definition of hoax (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : an act intended to trick or dupe : imposture the victim of a cruel hoax assumed the bomb threat was just a hoax

2 : something accepted or established by fraud or fabrication believes the Loch Ness Monster is a hoax a literary hoax

Other Words from hoax Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about hoax

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Examples of hoax in a Sentence

Verb

a skilled forger who hoaxed the art world into believing that the paintings were long-lost Vermeers

Noun

The bomb threat is probably a hoax, but we should still evacuate the building. She was the victim of a cruel hoax.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

False news articles were deliberately spread across our feeds to hoax us. — Joanna Stern, WSJ, "Facebook Portal Non-Review: Why I Didn’t Put Facebook’s Camera in My Home," 8 Nov. 2018 The effort, dubbed #ThinkBeforeYouPost, reminds would-be pranksters that hoax threats are not a joke and could result in federal or state charges. — Karen Kucher, sandiegouniontribune.com, "FBI launches campaign to 'think before you post' hoax threats," 10 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The nature of the racial hoax seems to have changed. — Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, "Are Hate-Crime Laws Helping?," 22 Feb. 2019 The reaction to the Grievance Study hoax was mixed. — Zack Beauchamp, Vox, "The controversy around hoax studies in critical theory, explained," 15 Oct. 2018 Global warming is a total, and very expensive, hoax! — Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, "Prince Charles and Prince William Reportedly Refused to Meet with Donald Trump," 16 July 2018 Those students reportedly blocked him when the hoax was found out. — Rita Giordano, Philly.com, "Warrant issued for fake Alicia Keys DJ who duped Philadelphia school officials," 20 May 2018 As students, politicians and tech companies continue to respond to the conspiracy theories, here’s what to know about the controversy: What are the hoax conspiracy theories? — Katie Reilly, Time, "Florida Shooting Survivors Are Being Targeted by Conspiracy Theories. Here's What to Know," 22 Feb. 2018 The indictment unsealed Wednesday charges Tyler Barriss with conspiracy, false information and hoaxes, cyberstalking, interstate threats and other charges. — Fox News, "Feds charge California man, 2 gamers in deadly hoax call," 23 May 2018 The 24-year-old from Beverly, Mass., faces five counts of mailing threatening communications and false information and hoaxes, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts. — Washington Post, "Man charged with threatening Trump Jr.," 7 Mar. 2018 After months of back and forth, President Donald Trump, who has referred to global warming as a hoax, announced on June 1, 2017, that the U.S. would withdraw from the international accord. — Susmita Baral, Teen Vogue, "Trump and the Paris Climate Change Agreement, Explained," 2 Aug. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hoax.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.