as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
was shortchanged out of a promotion
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Recent Examples of shortchanged
The Bears were shortchanged by the NFL, which refused to award them third-round comp picks in 2026 and 2027 for helping develop Ian Cunningham, now the Falcons’ GM.
—
Jacob Robinson, New York Times, 11 Mar. 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
Still, breakfast shifts are often underestimated and shouldn't be shortchanged, Sheik added.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The money is supposed to follow the student, but the Auditor General of Florida found public schools shortchanged by $100 million.
—Don Gaetz, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Jan. 2026
An article from The Star in 2017 said the two began conceptualizing the store in 2015 after noticing men were being shortchanged in the retail industry.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 30 Dec. 2025
Other typically snowy areas have been shortchanged so far.
—Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 26 Nov. 2025
Badly shortchanged by its pandemic release, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel is still one of the director’s most underrated efforts.
—Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2025
Jacob Robinson, New York Times, 11 Mar. 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
Still, breakfast shifts are often underestimated and shouldn't be shortchanged, Sheik added.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The money is supposed to follow the student, but the Auditor General of Florida found public schools shortchanged by $100 million.
—Don Gaetz, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Jan. 2026
An article from The Star in 2017 said the two began conceptualizing the store in 2015 after noticing men were being shortchanged in the retail industry.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 30 Dec. 2025
Other typically snowy areas have been shortchanged so far.
—Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 26 Nov. 2025
Badly shortchanged by its pandemic release, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel is still one of the director’s most underrated efforts.
—Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortchanged
Verb
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Schiller is a man who cheated death and whose harrowing ordeal is dramatized by actor Tony Shalhoub in a recent movie.—
Troy Roberts,
CBS News,
8 Apr. 2026
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The chat room was on fire, because Magnus Carlsen had lost to the kid—Hans Niemann—and then implied that Hans had cheated.—
Ben Mezrich,
Vanity Fair,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The crowd applauded when Rahm took the bag from Garcia and started carrying it himself as caddie Adam Hayes hustled to catch up to the players.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Senior forward Amanda Ratz, a first-year varsity player, hustled to get to the ball, and then the Huskies were off to the races on a counterattack.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Sudhir Srivastava, vice president of the Noida Entrepreneurs Association, said manufacturers were being squeezed from multiple directions.—
Mayu Saini,
Footwear News,
17 Apr. 2026
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Bottom line Private credit’s share of overall financing in the US economy has grown, and when that growth slows or stops, small businesses with few other options get squeezed.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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People have reported severe reactions, including anaphylaxis, after being stung by the ant.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2026
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Anthropic leaks its code; Mercor stung by data breach.—
John Kell,
Fortune,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Beaufort, North Carolina This fishing village with century-old homes, idyllic marinas, and pristine beaches could be plucked from a vintage postcard.—
Lisa Cericola,
Southern Living,
17 Apr. 2026
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With its cast of characters essentially plucked from Fugard’s early life in Port Elizabeth, the play introduces Hally (a stand-in for Fugard) at a crossroads.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Semi-screwed There’s a world in which Colby was the most screwed over by the rock draw — because Dee and Emily are friends who already played together, and both were aligned with Cirie — but that world is one in which he was not injured and likely limping out of the game anyway.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Apr. 2026
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A lot of times, much of a Hollywood memoir is someone saying this person screwed me over, this bad thing happened, and so on.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
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His family said Kearns was standing on solid ground before he was sucked into the drain and got stuck under five feet of floodwaters.—
Adam Thompson,
CBS News,
14 Apr. 2026
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Its first-stage booster made its 18th flight and stuck the landing without issue on the droneship Just Read the Instructions in the Atlantic Ocean.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shortchanged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortchanged. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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