as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
the famed faith healer turned out to be a charlatan
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of charlatan
First up was Ben Shapiro, who described Tucker Carlson and others as grifters and charlatans, guilty of misleading their audiences with falsehoods and conspiracy theories.
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Jonathan J. Cooper,
Fortune,
19 Dec. 2025
Macfadyen’s Guiteau is an obvious charlatan; a man so easy to peg as a bad seed that a bank manager remembers him from a single confrontation five years earlier.
—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
6 Nov. 2025
The 1886 hotel was once an experimental hospital set up by infamous charlatan Norman Baker.
—
Noreen Kompanik,
Boston Herald,
26 Oct. 2025
Famously, the Wizard is a charlatan in every version of the text.
—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
30 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Jonathan J. Cooper,
Fortune,
19 Dec. 2025
Macfadyen’s Guiteau is an obvious charlatan; a man so easy to peg as a bad seed that a bank manager remembers him from a single confrontation five years earlier.
—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
6 Nov. 2025
The 1886 hotel was once an experimental hospital set up by infamous charlatan Norman Baker.
—
Noreen Kompanik,
Boston Herald,
26 Oct. 2025
Famously, the Wizard is a charlatan in every version of the text.
—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
30 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for charlatan
Noun
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David Vander Meer, 49, was being held at Clark County Detention Center on first-degree murder and insurance fraud charges stemming from the death of his wife, Bernadette, two decades ago.
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According to prosecutors, Eidleh deposited more than $5 million in fraud proceeds, kickbacks and bribes into accounts associated with shell companies in an effort to conceal the source of the money.
Noun
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Each quilt comes with two matching shams to complete the look, and the bedding uses ultrasonic binding instead of stitching so the filling doesn’t shift.
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The set also comes with two matching pillow shams for a cohesive look.
Noun
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The publicly available letter, which was dated June 18, comes as Europe prepares to start implementing more regulations under the AI Act this August, including the transparency obligations requiring companies to disclose deep fakes in audio and visual content.
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The fakes are similar to the genuine article in appearance, but some show poor craftsmanship.
Noun
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Is the team a contender, a pretender or rebuilding?
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Now, hardship seems to be an end in itself, a battle scar or badge of honor that distinguishes true backpackers from mere pretenders.
Noun
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But when a patient recognizes him from his dangerous past, Brown has eight hours to elude the government, mob hitmen, quack surgeons, and a trail of dead gangers to beat the reaper somehow.
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But let’s circle back to TV‘s patron saint of affable, oft–insidious quacks.
Noun
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The actors are perfectly cast, starting with Marmaï’s likable Antoine, the only player here not being the deceiver.
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The film tells the true and twisted tale of a deceiver of land and folk, who, defying her birth as a woman, comported herself as a man and committed many a wicked deed.
Noun
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Good afternoon and welcome to Con Con, the convention for swindlers, mountebanks, and the people who love them.
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Godard might have come across as a species of poseur – a pretentious, quote-spouting mountebank – but his way of seeing was genuinely new.
Noun
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To tell the truly venomous from the fakers, there are a couple details to help distinguish the two.
Cite this Entry
“Charlatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/charlatan. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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