shortchanged

verb

past tense of shortchange
as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats was shortchanged out of a promotion

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 shortchanged When Zayn lost the WWE title to Punk less than two weeks after winning it, there was a lot of chatter that he had been shortchanged and would never get a crack at the WWE title again. — Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026 One side tends to feel shortchanged, and the other two have to decide whether to kick in more value to save the deal. — Stephen J. Nesbitt, New York Times, 23 July 2026 Still after the match controversy arose after some fans thought Haiti’s men soccer team, Les Grenadiers, were shortchanged. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 15 June 2026 Capital projects — which got shortchanged in last year’s budget — would also be restored closer to levels seen in the past. — Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026 Counties say they’re being shortchanged in Newsom’s budget. — Sacbee.com, 15 May 2026 My one qualm with the otherwise fantastic character development on this show is that Susie is getting shortchanged around every corner. — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 6 May 2026 Separateness was scrupulously honored and enforced, but equality was shortchanged with impunity. — Bruce Fein, Baltimore Sun, 5 Mar. 2026 The potential benefits would go to education, in particular, as well as to health care, child care and a slew of other state services that Democrats say have been shortchanged by a system that has been largely untouched for nearly 20 years. — The Denver Post, Denver Post, 31 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortchanged
  1. cheated
  2. hustled
  3. squeezed
  4. stung
  5. plucked
  6. screwed
  7. stuck
Verb
  • Not to be cheated in front of the largest assembly of Hall of Famers since the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium, Schwarber flew out twice to deep center field.
    — Dan Hayes, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Bo told Lu that if the audit produced evidence that he had been cheated, Wang should go to prison.
    — Hailey Wang, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of cheated
Verb
  • Hate crime charges have been filed against a man who disrupted Shabbat services in Manhattan's Central Synagogue and struck two people while being hustled outside Friday night.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Hong’s early capture of the data-center issue, which was not especially ideological, is a good example of how consistently the Party’s much larger traditional wing has been out-hustled.
    — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of hustled
Verb
  • Silver is now in its fifth straight year of structural deficit, squeezed by solar, electric vehicles, and the hardware powering AI.
    — Rob Kaplan, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Affordability does not improve when Washington adds trillions to the debt while working families are still getting squeezed.
    — Terry Collins, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of squeezed
Verb
  • Spray the nest from a distance to reduce the chances of being stung.
    — Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2026
  • More than 3,100 people have been stung at Bolsa Chica and Huntington State Beach so far this year, which is at least double last year's total.
    — Michele Gile, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of stung
Verb
  • He was plucked out of retirement to take on the demanding role of helping in the reconstruction of Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Doubs plucked the ball over Gonzalez, who had successfully backed him near the boundary but couldn’t box out the 6-foot-2 receiver entirely.
    — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of plucked
Verb
  • The hardest physical part was actually taking down the old blinds, which had been screwed tightly into the window frame years prior.
    — Scott Kramer, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • But the war needs to end because every day that the war continues, America gets weaker, Iran gets stronger, and people here in the United States get screwed, as prices go up, and up and up.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of screwed
Verb
  • While steeped in a ton of history, York is anything but stuck in the past.
    — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026
  • You could be stuck at one weight on a leg exercise for a week because of a limited range of motion.
    — Jesse Newell, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of stuck

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Cite this Entry

“Shortchanged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortchanged. Accessed 21 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of shortchanged for Spanish Speakers

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