as in to deceive
to cause to believe what is untrue
Tom Sawyer famously hoodwinked the other boys into thinking there was nothing more enjoyable than whitewashing a fence
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hoodwink
Public health often responds that MAHA supporters like Elizabeth, Melinda, and Nancy have been hoodwinked by social media influencers, grifters, and anti-vaccine zealots.
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Tom W. Johnson, STAT, 26 Jan. 2026
Invited to provide his thoughts on this, Arbeloa stressed he won’t be hoodwinked.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
That rowdy group is out to swindle and hoodwink rich guys.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Even as the Deliriant and his pint-size accomplice attempt to hoodwink a monster, they’re left to wonder, poignantly, if anything in their duplicitous world is real.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoodwink
Tom W. Johnson, STAT, 26 Jan. 2026
Invited to provide his thoughts on this, Arbeloa stressed he won’t be hoodwinked.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
That rowdy group is out to swindle and hoodwink rich guys.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Even as the Deliriant and his pint-size accomplice attempt to hoodwink a monster, they’re left to wonder, poignantly, if anything in their duplicitous world is real.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoodwink
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoodwink
Verb
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Subscriptions started at $88 per week and included almost 300 templates for fake websites designed to deceive customers, a dashboard that allowed criminals to monitor their campaigns, a discussion forum where users could find collaborators and receive support, and keylogging capabilities.—
Will McCurdy,
PC Magazine,
13 June 2026
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The problem is, most people feel deceived when the person in front of them doesn't match the profile.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
Verb
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Kurt's key takeaways Rick's story is a tough reminder that scams can look polished enough to fool careful people.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2026
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Mining coal waste Do not let the name fool you.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
11 June 2026
Verb
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This happened after a phone phishing attack tricked someone into giving the attacker a way into the system.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
7 Dec. 2025
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Scammers will sometimes send fake forgiveness notices to try and get personal information or trick you into paying a fee.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
3 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hoodwink.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoodwink. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
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