Synonyms of charlatans

charlatans

noun

plural of charlatan

as in frauds

one who makes false claims of identity or expertise

the famed faith healer turned out to be a charlatan

Synonyms & Similar Words

• frauds
• fakes
• pretenders
• shams
• quacks
• deceivers
• mountebanks
• misleaders
• fakers
• impostors
• humbugs
• phonies
• actors
• fakirs
• operators
• counterfeiters
• hoaxers
• ringers
• imitators
• dissemblers
• quacksalvers
• copycats
• tricksters
• swindlers
• poseurs
• impersonators
• skinners
• scammers
• sharpers
• fraudsters
• mimics
• bluffers
• dodgers
• duper
• scamsters
• defrauders
• feigners
• sharpies
• cozeners

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• professionals
• experts
• masters
• adepts
• authorities
• virtuosos
• wizards
• maestros
• past masters
• aces
• whizzes
• crackerjacks

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of charlatans

Ours is not a society that loathes charlatans; look who’s running things. — Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2026

In place of San Francisco’s decaying arts bohemia of poseurs and charlatans, they can be said to be creating an alternate bohemia. — Michael Bernick, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026

Others estimate that $500 billion in federal spending is diverted by charlatans each year. — Las Vegas Review-Journal, Twin Cities, 7 June 2026

The 21st century’s obstacles for young men—as seen in deaths of despair and lagging employment—have been amply publicized both by credible journalists and by charlatans such as Fuentes. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026

Carl Sagan's baloney detection kit taught us how to separate good science from the work of charlatans. — Big Think, 10 Feb. 2026

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. — Jonathan J. Cooper, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025