as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
claimed that many doctors were frauds and mountebanks
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Recent Examples of mountebank
Caricatured by Honoré Daumier and his lesser followers always as a mountebank, a charlatan, a circus clown, Louis Napoleon could normalize the extent of his outrages by the seeming harmlessness of his absurdities.
—
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
With tariffs on pharmaceuticals, the mountebank of Mar-A-Lago wants to punish a small democracy of 5.3 million people that for the past 60 years has worked its way into the top table of drug research and production: Ireland.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 29 Mar. 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 Republican, who is angling for the GOP nomination for president, staged a roundtable of scientific mountebanks on Wednesday to attack the vaccines.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2023
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
Berk was no mountebank or philistine.
—Mimi Kramer, Vulture, 10 May 2022
Another was Charles Colchester, a mountebank who also conjured Willie to the satisfaction of the first lady.
—John J. Miller, WSJ, 30 Oct. 2022
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
With tariffs on pharmaceuticals, the mountebank of Mar-A-Lago wants to punish a small democracy of 5.3 million people that for the past 60 years has worked its way into the top table of drug research and production: Ireland.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 29 Mar. 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 Republican, who is angling for the GOP nomination for president, staged a roundtable of scientific mountebanks on Wednesday to attack the vaccines.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2023
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
Berk was no mountebank or philistine.
—Mimi Kramer, Vulture, 10 May 2022
Another was Charles Colchester, a mountebank who also conjured Willie to the satisfaction of the first lady.
—John J. Miller, WSJ, 30 Oct. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mountebank
Noun
-
The government push comes despite a Senate probe in May that revealed the labor program was fraught with problems including the commercial exploitation of job seekers, fraud, and poor working conditions overseas.—
Martin K.N Siele,
semafor.com,
20 June 2025
-
The truth is that almost all the fraud, waste and abuse in the health care system comes from the billing and payment processes and skyrocketing prices, not from people who rely on Medicaid for essential care.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
20 June 2025
Noun
-
Looking at the historical sample of data, the goal was to develop a set of rules that helped distinguish the genuine contenders from the pretenders and to narrow down as few actual champions as possible while simultaneously eliminating as many of the wannabes.—
Neil Paine,
New York Times,
17 June 2025
-
But for those trying to fill out their brackets this week, here are the Big Ten’s contenders and pretenders heading into March Madness.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Official results of the election handed Lukashenko his sixth term in office but were denounced by the opposition and the West as a sham.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
22 June 2025
-
Another sign that this search was viewed as a sham was that the most impressive outside candidate was the city manager of Norcross, Ga., an Atlanta suburb of 18,000 residents.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
21 June 2025
Noun
-
And not just shooting the shot, but using it to create space for my teammates or using a shot fake to create a different shot for myself or a drive to kick.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
28 June 2025
-
But a closer inspection revealed some telltale signs that the document, first obtained by the Tribune through a public records request, is likely a fake.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
27 June 2025
Noun
-
Caricatured by Honoré Daumier and his lesser followers always as a mountebank, a charlatan, a circus clown, Louis Napoleon could normalize the extent of his outrages by the seeming harmlessness of his absurdities.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
13 June 2025
-
Where to watch Saw: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) 03 of 10 Saw X (2023) John Kramer ventures to Mexico for an experimental cancer treatment administered by money-hungry charlatans in this slick but not particularly inventive revival sequel, which takes place between the events of Saw and Saw II.—
Declan Gallagher,
EW.com,
10 May 2025
Noun
-
Tell that to the kids who have been hospitalized and died from measles, following quack Dr. Bobby’s Rx to avoid the shots.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
29 May 2025
-
The Spare Room by Helen Garner This is a book about a woman, Helen, who decides to let her old friend, Nicola, who is dying of cancer, come and stay with her in Melbourne while Nicola sees a local quack doctor.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
21 May 2025
Noun
-
The Reframe: From Proving To Exploring Breaking free from the impostor myth isn’t about proving more.—
Neerja Bhatia,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
-
The impostors then stole two hot dogs and menaced the vendor with a knife before taking off on Seventh Ave., heading toward 44th St. Cops took one man into custody following the heist, and are looking for a second person dressed in a red hoodie, black pants and black and white sneakers.—
Nicholas Williams,
New York Daily News,
8 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mountebank.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mountebank. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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