1
as in deceived
to cause to believe what is untrue
cozened several elderly ladies into believing that he was intending marriage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
cozened scores of people by persuading them to hand over funds that he would "invest"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cozened
Verb
-
Svetlana Petriychuk wrote the play Finist, the Brave Falcon, based on real events, about Russian women deceived into marrying ISIS fighters and traveling to Syria.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Mar. 2026 -
Veteran Vietnam correspondent Neil Sheehan broke the story of the Pentagon Papers, which showed how government officials deceived the public about the Vietnam war.—
Kathy Kiely,
The Conversation,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
So those Santa Ana constituents would be cheated out of services if the money remained solely in the First District.—
Tony Saavedra,
Oc Register,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Increasingly bitter about being cheated, and decreasingly able or willing to hide it, Rick exhibits erratic behavior that alienates his friends, his family, his band.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But savvy marketing campaigns and partnerships with major employers have tricked consumers into turning back to payday loans.—
Christopher Greenwood,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Mar. 2026
-
The receiver is not malfunctioning; it has simply been tricked.—
Anna Raymaker,
The Conversation,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The team was always clear that the cast needed to be mostly up-and-coming talent, many of whom have been plucked from the growing world of social media comedy.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
20 Mar. 2026
-
Oreade, the fine dining restaurant, is where Chef Riccardo Bacciottini unleashes his creativity and technical prowess, using local ingredients (many plucked right from the hotel’s gardens) to make sublime dishes like tomato tartare with basil and miso or artichokes confited with pepper sauce.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The viral claim has been confirmed as satire by both local law enforcement and independent fact-checkers — but before the truth caught up, the story had already reached countless feeds and fooled plenty of readers along the way.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Tatum then isolated against the Spurs big man, fooled him with an up-fake, finished at the rim and smiled after being shoved to the ground.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Facing such a talent deficit against a full-strength Knicks team, every turnover stung for the longtime coach.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Getting fired had clearly stung, but his love for Orlando had not faded.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Skin torn off the top of LeBron James’ knee, the Lakers star sharing a photo to Instagram on Monday morning, is somehow a representative image of how the team hustled its way to a five-game winning streak.—
Benjamin Royer,
Oc Register,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Gonzales hustled down the line on the play.—
Jaylon Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The three of us squeezed into our bedroom closet and huddled over my phone.—
Amanda Peet,
New Yorker,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Tkachuk controlled the loose puck in the crease and squeezed it past goalie Ilya Sorokin for the comeback victory.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
20 Mar. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Cozened.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cozened. Accessed 23 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
