mountebank

noun

ˈmau̇n-ti-ˌbaŋk How to pronounce mountebank (audio)
Definition of mountebanknext
as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise claimed that many doctors were frauds and mountebanks

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 mountebank Good afternoon and welcome to Con Con, the convention for swindlers, mountebanks, and the people who love them. — Henry Alford, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025 Godard might have come across as a species of poseur – a pretentious, quote-spouting mountebank – but his way of seeing was genuinely new. — Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 13 Nov. 2025 Gould observed that Jerry Falwell had taken up the mountebank’s mission of William Jennings Bryan. — Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024 Now, this pallid Color Purple epitomizes the artistic dearth of an era when a cultural mountebank like Winfrey uses race and feminist guile to cheat us of America’s most creative achievements. — Armond White, National Review, 3 Jan. 2024 The alternative circumstance, that crackpots and mountebanks might claim such evidence exists, then fail to produce any, is, on the other hand, entirely plausible and familiar. — Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 31 July 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mountebank
  1. fraud
  2. sham
  3. pretender
  4. charlatan
  5. fake
  6. deceiver
  7. quack
  8. impostor
Noun
  • An extraditable arrest warrant was obtained on charges of first-degree identity theft, second-degree money laundering, first-degree larceny, criminal impersonation and second-degree telephone fraud.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 7 Aug. 2026
  • But even some of the grants slated to fund more traditional human rights projects skirt federal requirements for competitive bidding that are meant to deter waste, fraud and abuse.
    — Anna Maria Barry-Jester, ProPublica, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of fraud
Noun
  • Critics dismissed the elections, which were held in December and January, as a sham designed to consolidate the military’s grip on power while ostensibly restoring civilian rule.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Linen bedding can get costly fast, but this quilt set comes in at under $200—and includes matching shams.
    — Better Homes & Gardens, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of sham
Noun
  • The transfer portal can transform a contender into a pretender in a single offseason.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The schedule is forgivable, even by ACC standards, but a rematch on the road against Notre Dame will separate the Canes as contenders or pretenders.
    — Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of pretender
Noun
  • In place of San Francisco’s decaying arts bohemia of poseurs and charlatans, they can be said to be creating an alternate bohemia.
    — Michael Bernick, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • Others estimate that $500 billion in federal spending is diverted by charlatans each year.
    — Las Vegas Review-Journal, Twin Cities, 7 June 2026
Definition of charlatan
Noun
  • Trump’s improbable rise to political dominance, which polls failed to register in the lead-up to the 2016 election, is a clear testament to that reality, and now Michigan has shown how similar head fakes can occur on the left.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The employee framed by a fake inherits the job of proving a negative.
    — Lars Daniel, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of fake
Noun
  • The actors are perfectly cast, starting with Marmaï’s likable Antoine, the only player here not being the deceiver.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 12 May 2026
  • The film tells the true and twisted tale of a deceiver of land and folk, who, defying her birth as a woman, comported herself as a man and committed many a wicked deed.
    — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 20 Jan. 2026
Definition of deceiver
Noun
  • DeSantis, his quack surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, and Uthmeier are all faces of that paranoia.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 6 Aug. 2026
  • But when a patient recognizes him from his dangerous past, Brown has eight hours to elude the government, mob hitmen, quack surgeons, and a trail of dead gangers to beat the reaper somehow.
    — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 18 Dec. 2025
Definition of quack
Noun
  • This is fairly confusing, since Izzy and Zach tie with four points apiece and Oscar gets two points – which doesn’t reflect either the imposter voting that round or the voting throughout the game.
    — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 11 Aug. 2026
  • In Orange County, Rivera reported her impostor to the state bar, which is investigating.
    — Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2026
Definition of impostor

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mountaintops
mountebank
mountebankery
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Cite this Entry

“Mountebank.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mountebank. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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