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

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 move is meant to help prevent hastily recorded hoax videos from rising to the top of YouTube’s recommendations. — Issie Lapowsky, WIRED, "YouTube Debuts Plan to Promote and Fund 'Authoritative' News," 9 July 2018 Apparently, the Russian election-meddling wasn’t a hoax after all. — Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Doc: Xavier Musketeers, UC Bearcats take their lumps. Now what?," 19 Feb. 2018 But skeptics say the game is likely a hoax meant to scare parents. — Megan Friedman, Good Housekeeping, "Parents Say Their 15-Year-Old Died Because of the Online "Blue Whale Challenge"," 13 July 2017 But there was another, major thread in the comments: Is the flight attendant story true or a hoax? — Dawn Gilbertson, azcentral, "Did a flight attendant see 16 migrant children on a flight from Phoenix to Miami?," 19 June 2018 Barriss also is charged with making false reports and hoaxes, cyberstalking, making interstate threats, making interstate threats to harm by fire and wire fraud. — Roxana Hegemen, Cincinnati.com, "Local gamer pleads not guilty in 'swatting' death," 14 June 2018 Barriss also is charged with making false reports and hoaxes, cyberstalking, making interstate threats, making interstate threats to harm by fire and wire fraud. — Washington Post, "2 gamers plead not guilty in Kansas ‘swatting’ death," 13 June 2018 Jones has falsely claimed to his millions of followers that the horrific mass shooting that killed 20 first graders and six adults in Newtown, Conn., was a hoax, spurring some to harass the victims’ families. — Brian Chasnoff, San Antonio Express-News, "Comeuppance for conspiracy theorists," 25 May 2018 The president has labeled climate change a hoax, and the Department of Energy has proposed cutting research for carbon capture programs (Greenwire, Feb. 15). — Benjamin Storrow, Scientific American, "Carbon Capture Test Facility Opens in Wyoming," 17 May 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.