as in extortion
the exaction of a grossly excessive charge for goods or services
the fleecing of the summer tourists seems to be a time-honored tradition on that resort island
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in cheating
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
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 fleecing
Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
Verb
After the property sale, Graham started fleecing his mother while transferring money from her New York bank and brokerage accounts into his own checking account in Miami, according to a factual statement filed with his plea agreement.
—Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fleecing
Noun
-
His multimillion dollar suit claiming extortion and defamation was dismissed over the summer by a New York judge.—
Madeleine Marr,
Miami Herald,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Once again, the court held that since money, like land, is property, the district’s plan of extortion was unconstitutional.—
James Burling,
Oc Register,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This isn’t the first time that the couple was surrounded by cheating rumors.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
30 Sep. 2025
-
She and Jon, who married in 1999, divorced in 2009, the same year as the cheating rumors.—
Carson Blackwelder,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Even if what Weyland-Yutani has is blood-sucking, eye-gouging, and chest-bursting alien monsters.—
James Grebey,
Vulture,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
But, to do you any good, squeezing the veins must propel the blood in the right direction, toward the heart.—
Bryant Stamford,
Louisville Courier Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The earbuds are controlled by squeezing the stem.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But in January, Axon CEO and billionaire cofounder Rick Smith killed their deal, accusing Flock of overcharging and trying to lock customers into its products.—
Thomas Brewster,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Normally, the ions slip between the atomic layers of the anode, a process called intercalation, but when the space between the layers is all filled up—as can happen during overcharging—there’s nowhere else for the lithium to go but onto the surface.—
Weiyang Li,
IEEE Spectrum,
23 Aug. 2018
Verb
-
Simply plucking young stars from viewers’ social-media feeds won’t radically alter or refresh SNL.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Miami is plucking Wilson off the Saints practice squad, likely to fill Hill’s roster spot.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Instead of hustling for one-day bookings, Patel engineered a system where one client often meant three to five events—maximizing return and loyalty.—
Sindhya Valloppillil,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Four astronauts returned to Earth after hustling to the International Space Station five months ago to relieve the stuck test pilots of Boeing’s Starliner.—
Jeremy Mikula,
NBC news,
10 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Andreas Helmersen hit the bar while Patrick Berg’s stinging effort was saved by Guglielmo Vicario.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
-
These pretty pink jellyfish are carnivorous and have stinging tentacles that can reach up to 70 feet long.—
Meghan Overdeep,
Southern Living,
25 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fleecing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fleecing. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share