as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
swindlers who use the telephone to fleece senior citizens out of their savings
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of fleeced
At his sentencing in 2024, Bailyn, the prosecutor, described Lorquet as a greedy criminal who fleeced his country at one of its weakest moments in history.
—
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
8 June 2026
The lesson from the parking deal is not merely that the city got fleeced by private investors.
—
Chicago Tribune,
28 May 2026
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar is warning of another scam that fleeced local residents out of tens of thousands of dollars — this time targeting family members of inmates in the Bexar County jail.
—
Saul Pink,
San Antonio Express-News,
28 Feb. 2026
Mexican cartels have fleeced American victims for hundreds of millions of dollars through timeshare fraud over the decades, treasury officials said, targeted them through call centers staffed by English-speaking telemarketers.
—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
Compared with the ostensible consequences of the prisoner’s dilemma, getting fleeced in the snowdrift problem’s scenario isn’t quite as disastrous.
—
Joseph Howlett,
Scientific American,
23 Feb. 2026
Their false claims about getting financially fleeced by Uncle Sam were fueled by a rather sophisticated, albeit deceitful and shameful lobbying campaign, sponsored by greedy gadflies out to make a quick buck.
—
Tom Margenau,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Feb. 2026
Zach Harper basically wrote that Atlanta got fleeced here, though.
—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
8 Jan. 2026
Donovan writes—the perception that men were being fleeced persisted.
—
Jennifer Wilson,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
8 June 2026
The lesson from the parking deal is not merely that the city got fleeced by private investors.
—
Chicago Tribune,
28 May 2026
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar is warning of another scam that fleeced local residents out of tens of thousands of dollars — this time targeting family members of inmates in the Bexar County jail.
—
Saul Pink,
San Antonio Express-News,
28 Feb. 2026
Mexican cartels have fleeced American victims for hundreds of millions of dollars through timeshare fraud over the decades, treasury officials said, targeted them through call centers staffed by English-speaking telemarketers.
—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
Compared with the ostensible consequences of the prisoner’s dilemma, getting fleeced in the snowdrift problem’s scenario isn’t quite as disastrous.
—
Joseph Howlett,
Scientific American,
23 Feb. 2026
Their false claims about getting financially fleeced by Uncle Sam were fueled by a rather sophisticated, albeit deceitful and shameful lobbying campaign, sponsored by greedy gadflies out to make a quick buck.
—
Tom Margenau,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Feb. 2026
Zach Harper basically wrote that Atlanta got fleeced here, though.
—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
8 Jan. 2026
Donovan writes—the perception that men were being fleeced persisted.
—
Jennifer Wilson,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fleeced
Verb
-
Revote to be held in Hempstead Candidate Caprice Rines said she and the two others vying for the seat have been cheated.
-
The fans were cheated Sunday out of a chance to see an interesting pitching matchup between Shota Imanaga and Dylan Cease, the former Cubs farmhand and former White Sox pitcher.
Verb
-
On the walls, black-and-white printouts of newspaper articles, magazines and book pages looked like they were plucked from a Pinterest board on scrapbooking.
-
Despite his young age, the then 36-year-old was far from a nobody plucked from the ether, though.
Verb
-
The few that didn’t have hustled to catch up.
-
The first inning looked promising as Yandy Diaz and Jonathan Aranda singled, and Cedric Mullins hustled his bunt attempt into a hit to load the bases.
Verb
-
Democrats are still stung by Rogan’s nearly three-hour Trump interview in the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.
-
Having dominated most of his players in table tennis over the years, Gadowsky is still stung after meeting his match.
Verb
-
The performance uptick that Motorola squeezed from the 2026 Razr+ is minor at best, with results showing no significant year-over-year gains.
-
There was Paris squeezed between meetings on a fleeting work trip.
Verb
-
Now, Greg is screwed because, one week in, everyone is having a great time.
-
No matter who ends up on the Iron Throne, the common people get screwed.
Verb
-
While the men whom Chen allegedly swindled began to grow suspicious of her actions around 2024, the Clark County Marriage Bureau reported her to the police, resulting in the launch of an investigation around the same time.
-
Aller swindled deal after deal on 2022 draft night, garnering future draft picks and getting off enough salary to sign Brunson and more.
Verb
-
Maxxine battled back, but Raquel caught a spinning kick attempt and stuck Maxxine with a Tejana Bomb for the win.
-
Mangione briefly stuck in elevator Court began slightly later than usual Monday morning because Mangione got stuck in an elevator while trying to get to court.
Cite this Entry
“Fleeced.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fleeced. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
