fraudulent

adjective

fraud·​u·​lent ˈfrȯ-jə-lənt How to pronounce fraudulent (audio)
: characterized by, based on, or done by fraud : deceitful
fraudulent use of a credit card
fraudulent claims for unemployment compensationWall Street Journal
fraudulently adverb
fraudulentness noun

Examples of fraudulent in a Sentence

Corrupt leaders were chosen in a fraudulent election. fraudulent use of a credit card the victim of a fraudulent scheme
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This reduces the impact of potential fraudulent activity. Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 4 Nov. 2025 The spokesperson cited a 2024 case in which Spotify found that a fraudulent artist who falsely obtained $10 million in royalties from various streaming services had extracted just $60,000 from Spotify. Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 3 Nov. 2025 Last year, Beatdapp, a streaming fraud detection program, estimated that at least 10 percent of all streams are fraudulent, leading to annual losses of $2 to $3 billion. Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2025 Andrew Wheatley, minister without portfolio in the prime minister’s office, said the Jamaica Cyber Incident Response Team has identified more than two dozen fraudulent hurricane relief websites attempting to divert contributions and donations from legitimate sources. Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 31 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fraudulent

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fraudulent was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fraudulent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fraudulent. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.

Kids Definition

fraudulent

adjective
fraud·​u·​lent ˈfrȯ-jə-lənt How to pronounce fraudulent (audio)
: based on or done by fraud
fraudulently adverb
fraudulentness noun

Legal Definition

fraudulent

adjective
fraud·​u·​lent
: characterized by, based on, or done by fraud compare deceptive, false, misleading
fraudulently adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on fraudulent

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