hoodwinking 1 of 2

noun

as in fooling

Related Words

Relevance

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
  • RatHat relies heavily on tricking someone into installing a malicious Android app and approving powerful permissions.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Wardle found that a simple variation of ClickFix attack—a technique that has become remarkably effective in tricking people into infecting their devices—is all that’s required for an attacker to take control of a Muse account.
    — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of tricking
Noun
  • What about when Carole was hiding in the closet to try to overhear Luann calling her a pedophile, and Jules Wainstein kept trying to ruin her ruse?
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Last-ditch plan for prosecution Authorities next developed what Smallwood described as a last-ditch plan to prosecute Tanzer — a ruse that could catch him lying about the rape.
    — Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of ruse
Verb
  • Looking at wins and losses is useful and necessary, but often deceiving as to which team is better.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 7 Oct. 2026
  • But 3-0 marks can be deceiving heading into a battle of unbeatens at home against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of deceiving
Noun
  • The series unpacks the subterfuge and secrecy required to record the interviews and how Diana and Colthurst were on high alert while making the recordings, Barefield explained.
    — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026
  • This subterfuge makes sense, since what these people reveal implicates their superiors.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of subterfuge
Noun
  • Hosted by Alan Cumming, the social deduction game follows a group of contestants (who are sometimes celebrities) engaging in a Mafia or Werewolf-style game of deception.
    — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
  • With shifting alliances and deception, only the most calculating player will survive to win it all, per the logline.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of deception
Noun
  • Perhaps that’s why the studio’s new reliance upon computer trickery — courtesy of a collaboration with Wētā FX — feels more like more of a symptom of Prue’s crisis than part of the solution to it.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 11 Oct. 2026
  • Thursday is The New York Times’s favorite day of the week to publish crosswords with twists, surprises or extra layers of trickery to puzzle over.
    — Sean McGowan, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of trickery
Noun
  • Political stratagems in art were shifting in places like New York and Los Angeles, and the Pictures Generation’s ethos began to speak to young Black and brown artists, ultimately intersecting with their desire for representation.
    — Hilton Als, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 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
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hoodwinking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoodwinking. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 16
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All