1
as in ruses
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
giving the new guy at work her cell phone number—"in case of an emergency"—was just a flimflam to pique his romantic interest
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in scams
an instance of the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value
just the latest Internet flimflam to get e-mail recipients to reveal bank account numbers and other personal information
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in cheats
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
everyone likes to think that they're too smart to be flimflammed by anyone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flimflams
Noun
-
The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025 -
Many suspect a spam call and don't pick up the phone, leading foundation staff to sometimes devise ruses.—
Kelly Meyerhofer,
jsonline.com,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Trailer Park Boys is a faux documentary about three petty criminals running scams from their Halifax trailer park and streams on Netflix.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Online scams thrive when people stay silent, but sharing stories like Joe's helps others stay alert.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Blashill wants the Blackhawks to be a fast-pressure team at both ends of the rink, one that attacks vertically but never cheats for offense.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The new season finds the Shazam moving company battling corporate giant Zenithon Logistics, while Everett (Jae) drags the team through increasingly desperate schemes such as insurance scams, bogus grant applications and a basement AirBnb conversion gone wrong.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The company now has a consumer alert on its website warning visitors of such schemes.—
Emily Lorsch,
NBC news,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Satire is brilliant for exposing the folly of humans, especially those in power and those working in bad faith—the hypocrites and the frauds—and can be particularly potent when set in irrational or dystopic times.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Notice how these two Third World frauds are in federal custody, not state.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
As Arizona squeezes more money from its decreasing share of river water, freighting every drop with critical industries and a booming housing market, the price of water is bound to keep climbing.—
Austin Corona,
AZCentral.com,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The country’s geography squeezes a wild variety into a tight map.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Since launching in 2012, Candy Crush Saga has remained one of the most popular games on mobile devices, accruing millions of daily players.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
6 Nov. 2025
-
On the hardware side over 10+ million devices have been built around a recovery phrase by default, entrenching a market expectation in which seed phrases are the go-to recovery method, even as some vendors add alternatives.—
Wyles Daniel,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Even though the defeat stings, all the Hurricanes’ goals are still there for the taking.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
-
But for Hovland, the lingering frustration of missing Sunday singles and watching Harris English sit out for no fault of his own still stings.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Oct. 2025
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
“Flimflams.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flimflams. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share