1
as in deception
the inclination or practice of misleading others through lies or trickery
a conscienceless adventuress who never earned anything except through cheating
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in adultery
a sexual encounter or relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse
she swore that if there was ever any cheating, she'd leave in a heartbeat
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dishonest
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
1
as in misrepresenting
to use dishonest methods to achieve a goal
students who cheat on tests end up never knowing anything
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in lying
to be sexually unfaithful
he suspects that his girlfriend is cheating on him
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in disappointing
to fall short in satisfying the expectation or hope of
the daredevil survived his plunge over the falls with barely a scratch, having cheated death once again
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in hustling
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
a despicable confidence man who heartlessly cheated elderly people out of their savings
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of cheating
Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
The Justice Department's most high-profile Clean Air Act criminal case related to emissions cheating was Volkswagen.
—Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026
Many responded by banning the tool outright, fearing cheating and plagiarism.
—Ulrich Boser, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Then again, Beltrán also won a Roberto Clemente Award for community service, which does not erase the cheating but also counts toward his legacy.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026
Not every young person feels that this type of cheating is wrong.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 15 Jan. 2026
Given its history and tradition, Indiana’s success is unbelievable, surreal, and a product of an era that has reshaped both college sports, and cheating, too.
—Mac Engel
january 13, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 Jan. 2026
Instead, tax enforcement has been starved, and large-scale cheating has proliferated.
—Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2026
The process seems to be amicable; there was no cheating or abuse.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 6 Jan. 2026
Preston Fore, Fortune, 12 Nov. 2025
Alex Sherman,contessa Brewer, CNBC, 9 Jan. 2026
The predictions were that unleashing AI to the world at large would lead to an exponential rise in cheating at school and that student essays would cease to be original.
—Degen Pener, HollywoodReporter, 3 Jan. 2026
Accountancy has seen several cheating scandals in recent years, with the Big Four firms hit with multimillion-dollar fines after staff tricked internal exams, but the sector is far from alone.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 29 Dec. 2025
People cheating the system, trying to fleece taxpayers.
—CBS News, 28 Dec. 2025
Kardashian and Thompson split amid the cheating scandal while Woods and Jenner went from inseparable to incommunicado.
—Jillian Sederholm, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
But his girlfriend became angrier and accused him of cheating.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 22 Dec. 2025
Tech billionaires running wild, cheating execs, celebrities in space—the only choice was to laugh.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2025
Gen Z is 'monkey barring' — not cheating.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
Noun
Emotional cheating involves starting a relationship with someone.
—Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
The Justice Department's most high-profile Clean Air Act criminal case related to emissions cheating was Volkswagen.
—Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026
Many responded by banning the tool outright, fearing cheating and plagiarism.
—Ulrich Boser, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Then again, Beltrán also won a Roberto Clemente Award for community service, which does not erase the cheating but also counts toward his legacy.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026
Not every young person feels that this type of cheating is wrong.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 15 Jan. 2026
Given its history and tradition, Indiana’s success is unbelievable, surreal, and a product of an era that has reshaped both college sports, and cheating, too.
—Mac Engel
january 13, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 Jan. 2026
Instead, tax enforcement has been starved, and large-scale cheating has proliferated.
—Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2026
The process seems to be amicable; there was no cheating or abuse.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
The federation may sanction a player who makes unfounded accusations based on emotion or insufficient data, according to its anti-cheating laws.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 12 Nov. 2025
Verb
Contessa’s Corner Sports leagues, state gambling regulators and tribal leaders have all raised concerns that prediction market trades on sports don’t have the same level of guardrails as sportsbooks to protect against cheating by athletes, referees, coaches and other insiders.
—Alex Sherman,contessa Brewer, CNBC, 9 Jan. 2026
The predictions were that unleashing AI to the world at large would lead to an exponential rise in cheating at school and that student essays would cease to be original.
—Degen Pener, HollywoodReporter, 3 Jan. 2026
Accountancy has seen several cheating scandals in recent years, with the Big Four firms hit with multimillion-dollar fines after staff tricked internal exams, but the sector is far from alone.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 29 Dec. 2025
People cheating the system, trying to fleece taxpayers.
—CBS News, 28 Dec. 2025
Kardashian and Thompson split amid the cheating scandal while Woods and Jenner went from inseparable to incommunicado.
—Jillian Sederholm, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
But his girlfriend became angrier and accused him of cheating.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 22 Dec. 2025
Tech billionaires running wild, cheating execs, celebrities in space—the only choice was to laugh.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2025
Gen Z is 'monkey barring' — not cheating.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cheating
Noun
-
Named one of the 10 Best Books of 2025 by The New York Times, Angel Down follows Private Cyril Bagger, who has managed to survive the unspeakable horrors of WWI through his wits and deception, swindling fellow soldiers at every opportunity.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
-
The drama about power, deception, and the complex bond between father and son is set in 1930s New York as international financier Gregor Antonescu’s empire faces collapse.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The book presents itself as a comic take on the classic adultery novel and a send-up of a narrow, self-conscious group of downwardly mobile New Yorkers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Jan. 2026
-
The initial batch of documents showed that Angela Paxton sought the divorce on the grounds that Ken Paxton had committed adultery, but included no additional details.—
S.E. Jenkins,
CBS News,
19 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Like the other characters in the book, Harper is a stock figure, the brainiac child, but her fearlessness in the face of a crumbling, dishonest world reinvigorates the type.—
Hannah Gold,
New Yorker,
21 Jan. 2026
-
The American public gained a negative impression of McCarthy–many seeing him as bullying, reckless, and dishonest.—
Chris John Amorosino,
Hartford Courant,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In response, some on the right charged that the Times and its allies in academia were negatively misrepresenting American history.—
Jonathan Zimmerman,
The Atlantic,
23 Dec. 2025
-
In November 2023, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin began investigating First Choice Women’s Resource Center to see whether the nonprofit had violated state consumer fraud laws by misrepresenting its services to clients, donors and the public.—
Carly Thomsen,
The Conversation,
17 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Pretti is lying face up on the ground, motionless.—
Yahya Abou-Ghazala,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
-
These findings suggest that such planets can retain significant amounts of water despite lying outside the classical habitable zones—and this doesn’t apply to planets orbiting their stars too closely.—
Victoria Corless,
Space.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Dependably disappointing Jim Risch, Idaho’s oldest-ever senator, is now eighty-freaking-two!—
Michael Deeds,
Idaho Statesman,
8 Jan. 2026
-
That’s disappointing this year.—
SportsDay Staff,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Students were hustling around campus, coming and going on the penultimate Saturday of the semester.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
15 Dec. 2025
-
The bubbling party scene in New York City was indeed a movie, and Puffy was hustling his way into the leading role.—
Essence,
Essence,
11 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Broderick asked whether the government picked the five states first and then did research into whether there were fraud claims there.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
24 Jan. 2026
-
According to the indictment, Brett Rosen also regularly used the site to defend himself against accusations of fraud and market manipulation at least as early as 2021.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cheating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cheating. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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