as in gangster
a person who gets money from another by using force or threats
the racketeer threatened to have his thugs vandalize the shop if the shopkeeper didn't pay him a monthly bribe
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to blackmail
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of racketeer
San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2024
Three co-defendants accepted plea deals earlier this week on racketeering conspiracy charges and were sentenced to probation and time served.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 31 Oct. 2024
Ira Trivedi, Foreign Affairs, 7 Aug. 2015
Parts of the city turned into wastelands of racketeers and alcoholics.
—Simon Shuster, TIME, 4 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for racketeer
Noun
And Connick learned firsthand about being a defendant: Federal prosecutors charged him in 1990 with racketeering and aiding a sports-betting operation.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2024
Three co-defendants accepted plea deals earlier this week on racketeering conspiracy charges and were sentenced to probation and time served.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
She was arrested and charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act, usually reserved for drug racketeers and smugglers running large operations.
—Ira Trivedi, Foreign Affairs, 7 Aug. 2015
Parts of the city turned into wastelands of racketeers and alcoholics.
—Simon Shuster, TIME, 4 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for racketeer
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racketeer
Noun
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The all-star cast for the limited series includes Kevin Hart as Chicken Man, the organizer of the party, Taraji P. Henson as his right hand woman Vivian Thomas, Samuel L. Jackson as gangster Frank Moten, and Don Cheadle as J.D. Hudson, the cop trying to figure out who really orchestrated the crime.—
Marcus Jones,
IndieWire,
20 June 2025
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Creature With the Atom Brain sees a gangster force a German scientist to reanimate the dead with atomic radiation in order to pull off crimes (recalling both Frankenstein and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, films that fit neatly alongside the zombie genre).—
Daniel Dockery,
Vulture,
18 June 2025
Noun
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But throwing out our precious rights and freedoms, and allowing masked, unidentified thugs to roam our streets detaining people at will is absolutely not the answer.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
18 June 2025
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In an empty warehouse somewhere, McKenna leaves Stabler alone with Vincent Mathis, Emery’s thug.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
12 June 2025
Verb
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Mexico City band Molotov decry state agents who extort the same communities that pay their salaries, and make a plea for power to be returned to the people.—
Fidel Martinez,
Los Angeles Times,
20 June 2025
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But when Arthur is released unharmed, rumors fly that the whole thing was a plot contrived by the son to extort money from his father.—
Caroline Fraser
June 10,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2025
Verb
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The most daunting questions are still to come, as GOP leadership rushes to muscle Trump’s signature package to floor for votes by his Fourth of July deadline.—
Lisa Mascaro,
Chicago Tribune,
20 June 2025
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The Tush Push Prevails The Philadelphia Eagles used the technique, which muscles the quarterback into the end zone, to win the 2025 Super Bowl over the Kansas City Chiefs.—
Andrea Lavinthal,
People.com,
18 June 2025
Verb
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In some cases, governments even coerce companies into accepting artificially low prices by threatening to violate their patents and allow other manufacturers to produce copycat drugs.—
Rosa Mendoza,
Boston Herald,
16 June 2025
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Geragos has tried to portray Jane as a willing participant in encounters with male escorts and entertainers while Diddy watched, to undermine prosecution claims that she was coerced and trafficked.—
Victoria Bekiempis,
Vulture,
12 June 2025
Verb
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The shutdowns have caused significant disruptions to regional air traffic and forced airlines to reroute flights.—
Amanda Castro
Hannah Parry
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 June 2025
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In fact, one of those one-off events was the host of one of the coolest moments in Charlotte’s sports history — when a 16-year-old Charlotte FC academy player in Brian Romero forced a handball in the box in the waning minutes of the contest, then overtime, then a shootout and then a win.—
Alex Zietlow,
Charlotte Observer,
23 June 2025
Verb
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Since seizing power, in 1979, Iran’s theocracy has menaced its more than ninety million citizens and the wider region.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
21 June 2025
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Potentially dangerous animals menaced the survivalists.—
Frederick Dreier,
Outside Online,
13 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Racketeer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racketeer. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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