-
- To save this word, you'll need to log in.
: a person who is professionally unscrupulous especially in the practice of law or politics : pettifogger
Examples of shyster in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Holmes is another shyster whose story has been dissected in several documentaries and in dramatizations like Hulu’s The Dropout, but Gibney brings specific insights and a fresh perspective to this truly unbelievable story.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 31 July 2024
And there’s a character on there who is—plays kind of a shyster attorney.
—Nick Sibilla, Forbes, 11 Nov. 2022
How Bob Odenkirk became the great American shyster in the riveting show, Better Call Saul.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 1 May 2022
Marty the nebbish, Ike the shyster, Phyllis the shrew.
—Judy Berman, Time, 8 Nov. 2021
In the 1930s, it was purchased by Norman Baker, a shyster who lured cancer patients to come here for treatments that had no medicinal value.
—Valerie Fraser Luesse, Southern Living, 25 Sep. 2020
Small business owners trying to stay afloat as the economy reels from the impact of the coronavirus can add another worry to the list: shysters pretending to be affiliated with the federal government's flagship relief program.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 20 Apr. 2020
Lukens, almost alone, kept the faith, arguing that the bust had simply exposed honest dealers from shysters.
—The Economist, 18 Dec. 2019
Fyre Festival shyster Billy McFarland was just caught allegedly selling fake tickets to the Met Ball.
—refinery29.com, 15 June 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shyster.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
probably from German Scheisser, literally, defecator
First Known Use
1844, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near shyster
Cite this Entry
“Shyster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shyster. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
shyster
noun
shy·ster
ˈshī-stər
: a crooked lawyer or politician
More from Merriam-Webster on shyster
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for shyster
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share