as in cheats
a dishonest person who uses clever means to cheat others out of something of value
people who lost money in the scheme discovered that the investment company was a fake and the "owner" just a bilk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in plucks
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
an investigation revealed that the garage had been bilking motorists for repairs that had never been made
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bilks
Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2025
Noun
Fake invoices, bilks ‘restricted funds’ Jackson and court records show Gatlin approved hundreds of invoices for services and items that were never provided to the Foundation.
—Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bilks
Noun
-
Iran lies, cheats, blusters and bullies.—
Chris Roemer,
Baltimore Sun,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The world is full of bad actors—cheats, liars, tyrants, sickos—who are, ultimately, mere human beings; at least, this was how rationality would have it.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But if Rick later plucks something from behind that rock at the fire, are others going to start poking around looking for stuff?—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 Mar. 2026
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The first layer, called the Level-1 Trigger, or L1T, harvests 100,000 events per second, and the second layer, called the High-Level Trigger, or HLT, plucks 1,000 of those events to save for later analysis.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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But my collection intentionally ignored the fraudulent exploits of billionaire heirs, tax dodgers and corporate magnates — defense contracts, government lobbying, bank accounts in Switzerland, shell companies in Panama, citizenship of Antigua and political asylum in London.—
Snigdha Poonam,
The Dial,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The pencil-thin DQ Tower squeezes a full home into a very slender footprint, while the EONE XL takes a wider prefab approach to the same basic challenge.—
Stefan Ionescu
March 30,
New Atlas,
30 Mar. 2026
-
There’s no end to the war in sight after one month as Iran squeezes the global economy.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Critics say there are 41 species of existing sharks that the Department of Natural Resources is responsible for.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
23 Mar. 2026
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For older sharks, the authors said, socializing may not be as integral to survival.—
BRADY DENNIS THE WASHINGTON POST,
Arkansas Online,
22 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In games like Tuesday, when that deep postseason run seems realistic, UCLA pops the ball around on offense and communicates and hustles to overcome its deficiencies on defense.—
Aaron Heisen,
Daily News,
6 Mar. 2026
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Compared to the behemoth Acela, which hustles hundreds of thousands of riders between Boston, New York City, and Washington DC each month, Amtrak's Mardi Gras line is downright petite—just two 58-seat coaches, plus a café car and a 14-seat Business Class car.—
Kara Newman,
Condé Nast Traveler,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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This scam, according to Kent, could be proliferated with the use of AI, which can allow swindlers to enroll in many different college programs at once.—
Peter D'Abrosca,
FOXNews.com,
21 Jan. 2026
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Good afternoon and welcome to Con Con, the convention for swindlers, mountebanks, and the people who love them.—
Henry Alford,
New Yorker,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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And that’s the part that stings.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 Mar. 2026
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The loss stings, but doesn’t change the outlook of TCU’s chances of contending during March Madness.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bilks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bilks. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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