: a fraudulent or deceptive act or operation
an insurance scam
scammed; scamming; scams
1
: to deceive and defraud (someone)
… the law firm had got the lucrative job of defending the corporate head of a savings and loan that had scammed another thousand or so people out of their savings …—
Joseph Wambaugh
Joseph Wambaugh2
: to obtain (something, such as money) by a scam
A Boston hedge fund manager who scammed millions of dollars from friends, family and other investors in what authorities say was a Ponzi scheme has been sent to prison for more than 14 years.—The Worcester (Massachusetts) Telegram & Gazette
The Worcester (Massachusetts) Telegram & GazetteExamples of scam in a Sentence
Noun
She was the victim of an insurance scam.
a sophisticated credit card scam
Verb
The company scammed hundreds of people out of their life savings.
I could tell they were scamming you and charging too much.
They scammed a lot of money from unwary customers.
Recent Examples on the Web
Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
According to a five-pillar plan shared with CNBC, Cruz also aims to create federal standards for AI, prevent AI from being used in harmful ways such as scams, allow free speech and address ethical concerns.
—Emily Wilkins, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Maybe not all of us had a conspiracy-prone school custodian who may offer some surprisingly sage advice in one breath and try to scam you out of $20 in the next.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scam
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Noun
And this scam landscape was already surging.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
According to a five-pillar plan shared with CNBC, Cruz also aims to create federal standards for AI, prevent AI from being used in harmful ways such as scams, allow free speech and address ethical concerns.
—Emily Wilkins, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
For instance, victims who have only interacted with traffickers online, before being handed off to scam compound operators, may not be able to identify their traffickers.
—Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Maybe not all of us had a conspiracy-prone school custodian who may offer some surprisingly sage advice in one breath and try to scam you out of $20 in the next.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scam
Cite this Entry
“Scam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scam. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.
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