hoaxed; hoaxing; hoaxes
: to trick into believing or accepting as genuine something false and often preposterous
were hoaxed by the website
hoaxer
noun
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
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
Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 10 June 2024
Such criticism has led some police to respond more aggressively to hoax school shooting calls.
—Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica, 5 Oct. 2023
Orlando Sentinel and Chicago Tribune Editorial Boards, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2025
Joshua Lowe was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to false information and hoaxes, according to court records.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoax
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
Doxxed addresses have led to hoax 911 calls that prompted SWAT teams to raid victims’ homes.
—Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 10 June 2024
Such criticism has led some police to respond more aggressively to hoax school shooting calls.
—Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica, 5 Oct. 2023
Noun
They are aimed at gaining control over institutions likely to push back against Trump’s agenda by citing inconvenient truths: Climate change is no hoax, vaccines save millions of lives and sweeping tariffs amount to a huge tax hike on American consumers and businesses.
—Orlando Sentinel and Chicago Tribune Editorial Boards, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2025
Joshua Lowe was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to false information and hoaxes, according to court records.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoax
Cite this Entry
“Hoax.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hoax. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
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