hoodwinking 1 of 2

noun

as in fooling

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hoodwinking

2 of 2

verb

present participle of hoodwink
as in tricking
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 hoodwinking
Verb
Stadiums are notorious for their lack of multiplier impact, which is one reason these days why sports team owners, such as the McCaskey family that controls the Bears, have such a hard time hoodwinking governments into giving them direct subsidies to build their stadiums. — David Greising, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoodwinking
  1. fooling
  2. tricking
  3. ruse
  4. deceiving
  5. subterfuge
  6. deception
  7. trickery
  8. stratagem
Noun
  • No fooling, April brings some pretty interesting surprises on Netflix.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 27 Mar. 2026
Definition of fooling
Verb
  • Football is all about engaño (trickery) — looking one way and passing the other, feinting to go left and swiftly moving right, manipulating the opposition and tricking them to open up those little spaces.
    — Xavi, New York Times, 19 July 2026
  • What’s far more eloquent is the episode with the witch Circe (a terrific Samantha Morton), whose habit of tricking and transforming men into animals is rendered in evocatively physical, body-horror-esque imagery.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 July 2026
Definition of tricking
Noun
  • Fort Worth Police Department homicide detectives on Monday arrested Alonzo Reyes, 18, and Gerald Chamberlain, 17, on suspicion of murder in the alleged ruse.
    — Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 July 2026
  • The Chenbot also weighs in on Jason’s emotional ruse to Angela.
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 17 July 2026
Definition of ruse
Verb
  • Paul has long accused Fauci of deceiving Americans about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
    — Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 29 July 2026
  • All the wig and makeup work put into deceiving their people isn’t needed in the first place.
    — Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of deceiving
Noun
  • Her subterfuge eventually drives Frank to unknowingly hire Ariane’s own father to learn her identity.
    — Air Mail, Air Mail, 18 July 2026
  • The majority sees this as subterfuge.
    — Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 26 June 2026
Definition of subterfuge
Noun
  • Recent history suggests that the only effective counter to such meddling is a public statement alerting voters to the deception, by some credibly neutral, nonpartisan authority.
    — David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Peter trying to have a normal holiday while grieving Tony, Mysterio’s deception, and the post-credits scene that blows Peter’s life apart — all of it feeds into where the new film finds him.
    — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of deception
Noun
  • Football is all about engaño (trickery) — looking one way and passing the other, feinting to go left and swiftly moving right, manipulating the opposition and tricking them to open up those little spaces.
    — Xavi, New York Times, 19 July 2026
  • Marc Cucurella and Pedro Porro have stretched defenses from the flanks, while Lamine Yamal has confused them with his trickery.
    — Jibin Joseph, PC Magazine, 18 July 2026
Definition of trickery
Noun
  • Photograph by Glen Wilson / Lionsgate Fuqua’s low-key approach is both a natural expression of his personality and a shrewd stratagem to reassure people around him that everything is under control.
    — Kelefa Sanneh, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Through Elizabeth’s rise from servant to visionary who resisted Henry VIII’s break with the Roman Catholic Church to gain a divorce, Brown explores historical women’s stratagems for self-determination.
    — Monitor reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Apr. 2026
Definition of stratagem

Browse Nearby Words

hoodwinked
hoodwinking
hoodwinks
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Cite this Entry

“Hoodwinking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoodwinking. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on hoodwinking

Nglish: Translation of hoodwinking for Spanish Speakers

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