as in fraudulent
marked by, based on, or done by the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value
every new technology has brought with it a raft of defrauding schemes that make full use of it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in cheating
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
senior citizens generally were too smart to fall for the fast-talking salesman's attempts to defraud them
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in swindling
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defrauding
Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Her alleged defrauding of the Jackson Health Foundation, however, extended well beyond Miami, according to an indictment and other court records.
—Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
Ken Sweet, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
After being expelled from the House on a strongly bipartisan vote, Santos pleaded guilty to defrauding his donors.
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Twin Cities, 24 Oct. 2025
Initially, Ament was attempting to withdraw his July 2022 guilty plea to defrauding a cannabis company.
—City News Service, Oc Register, 21 Oct. 2025
Investigators with Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin's office arrested seven people charged with defrauding Medicaid during the first half of October, according to a news release Monday.
—Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2025
Gumrukcu is accused of defrauding Davis for years.
—Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 3 Oct. 2025
She is being held at the same facility as disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, who was sentenced to 11 years and 3 months in prison for defrauding investors with her medical startup.
—Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2025
Part of sale to pay restitution In 2018, McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison for engaging in several fraudulent schemes related to Fyre Festival, including defrauding investors out of $26 million and more than $100,000 in fraudulent ticket-selling schemes.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 17 Sep. 2025
In May, Gatlin was arrested on charges of defrauding her former employer, including fabricating fake invoices from vendors such as Jones and receiving kickbacks from them.
—Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
And what could be more legitimate of a cause for removing a governor of the nation's central bank—which is, among other things, the lender of last resort to the country's financial institutions—than the alleged defrauding of those very financial institutions?
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Her alleged defrauding of the Jackson Health Foundation, however, extended well beyond Miami, according to an indictment and other court records.
—Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
Noun
In comparison, Elizabeth Holmes, who was convicted of defrauding investors in the Theranos case, reportedly ended up with a legal bill of roughly $30 million.
—Ken Sweet, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
After being expelled from the House on a strongly bipartisan vote, Santos pleaded guilty to defrauding his donors.
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Twin Cities, 24 Oct. 2025
Initially, Ament was attempting to withdraw his July 2022 guilty plea to defrauding a cannabis company.
—City News Service, Oc Register, 21 Oct. 2025
Investigators with Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin's office arrested seven people charged with defrauding Medicaid during the first half of October, according to a news release Monday.
—Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2025
Gumrukcu is accused of defrauding Davis for years.
—Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 3 Oct. 2025
She is being held at the same facility as disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, who was sentenced to 11 years and 3 months in prison for defrauding investors with her medical startup.
—Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2025
Part of sale to pay restitution In 2018, McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison for engaging in several fraudulent schemes related to Fyre Festival, including defrauding investors out of $26 million and more than $100,000 in fraudulent ticket-selling schemes.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 17 Sep. 2025
In May, Gatlin was arrested on charges of defrauding her former employer, including fabricating fake invoices from vendors such as Jones and receiving kickbacks from them.
—Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defrauding
Adjective
-
Andrew Wheatley, minister without portfolio in the prime minister’s office, said the Jamaica Cyber Incident Response Team has identified more than two dozen fraudulent hurricane relief websites attempting to divert contributions and donations from legitimate sources.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
31 Oct. 2025
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Following a 2023 trial, a Florida jury found the Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital liable for false imprisonment, battery, fraudulent billing, wrongful death and intentional infliction of emotional distress — allegations by Kowalski's family that were documented in the Netflix documentary.—
Samira Asma-Sadeque,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The documents included disciplinary information and reportedly showed that Sherrill was barred from walking at her 1994 graduation after refusing to inform on classmates involved in a cheating scandal.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
-
In backrooms, there was none of the surveillance tech that reputable casinos use to catch players cheating.—
Rob Wile,
NBC news,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Matthiessen, not without reason, portrays the Bureau as paranoid, dishonest, and in league with corporate interests.—
Maggie Doherty,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
-
For that incredibly dishonest assessment that actually did a disservice to the country, Obama is held up to widespread praise by Democrats and others, even winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.—
Joe Battenfeld,
Boston Herald,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The thick elastic waistband fits snugly without squeezing, and the wide legs are flowy and casual, giving even more movement with subtle pleats at the front.—
Merrell Readman,
Travel + Leisure,
2 Nov. 2025
-
Raise your arms, legs and head (in a neutral position) off the mat, squeezing your glutes and bracing your core.—
Leoni Jesner,
Health,
1 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Several residents who work in the Georgia King Village area weighed in on the incident, including Harriette Guity, who told News12 that false reports based on AI could stretch first responders thin.—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
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Archaeologists concluded the structure was actually a false tomb, or a cenotaph, a type of burial monument erected to honor a deceased person buried elsewhere.—
Aspen Pflughoeft,
Miami Herald,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
On Canal Street on Thursday morning, lost tourists tripped over commuters hustling out of the subway, the grates on the souvenir stores went up, but most of the street vendors were still missing.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
23 Oct. 2025
-
The on-field swings were such a rarity that he was cheered on by Roberts, the Dodgers’ coaching staff and a handful of teammates and his walkup song (Michael Buble’s ‘Feeling Good’) blasted from the sound system briefly, sending photographers and cameramen hustling into action.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In his new memoir The Uncool, which hits bookshelves today, the rock journalist and director behind films such as Almost Famous and Elizabethtown recalls his experience calling up Grant and Ball as a teenager after plucking their numbers from his friend and fellow journalist's address book.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
28 Oct. 2025
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When not plucking away at a keyboard, Madison teaches yoga and mountain bikes with her two Australian shepherds, Cholla and Poppy, through Missoula's Rattlesnake Wilderness.—
Madison Dapcevich,
Outside,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Seawater keeps the jellyfish’s stinging capsules inert.—
Taryn White,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Oct. 2025
-
On the other side, the investigative news site Mediapart, which first broke news of Sarkozy’s Libya link, and other progressive titles delivered stinging editorials on his conduct.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defrauding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defrauding. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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