as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
the famed faith healer turned out to be a charlatan
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Recent Examples of charlatan
Tartuffe, a charismatic charlatan, insinuates himself into the lives of a wealthy family, setting off a chain reaction of disruption and pandemonium.
—
Del Mar Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Feb. 2024
But in Wicked, he's elevated to an even more sinister place — not merely a charlatan, but a fraud who has seized power and wants to use the magic of others to create a totalitarian world that answers to his every whim.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Nov. 2024
One exception is Cotton Marcus, the charlatan at the center of The Last Exorcism.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 30 July 2024
What’s interesting about it is that in the book, the Dragon Queen is very obviously a con woman and a charlatan right away, and she was based on someone that’s real.
—Max Gao, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Del Mar Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Feb. 2024
But in Wicked, he's elevated to an even more sinister place — not merely a charlatan, but a fraud who has seized power and wants to use the magic of others to create a totalitarian world that answers to his every whim.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Nov. 2024
One exception is Cotton Marcus, the charlatan at the center of The Last Exorcism.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 30 July 2024
What’s interesting about it is that in the book, the Dragon Queen is very obviously a con woman and a charlatan right away, and she was based on someone that’s real.
—Max Gao, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for charlatan
Noun
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Ignorance manifested in the DOGE false rumor that fraud was rampant because – again, wrongly -- millions of people over 150 were receiving payments.—
Teresa Ghilarducci,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
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Rather than leaning on the missions of inspectors general, whose job is to search out waste and fraud at government agencies, Trump has moved forcefully against them, flouting statutes that require a 30-day notice and specific reasons for their dismissals.—
Stephen Groves,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The set comes with two shams and a woven quilt that feels smooth and comfortable to sleep under all year round, according to shoppers.—
Toni Sutton,
People.com,
28 Feb. 2025
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The breakdown of democracy in the United States will not give rise to a classic dictatorship in which elections are a sham and the opposition is locked up, exiled, or killed.—
STEVEN LEVITSKY,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Once the actor put a razor to his upper lip, Donner ripped off his own mustache — a fake.—
David Morgan,
CBS News,
27 Feb. 2025
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The first is social engineering, using impersonation and deep fakes to trick an employee into giving up sensitive information.—
Matt Robison,
Newsweek,
24 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Without a bit more heart and soul, the spinoff is just a pretender in a nicely tailored suit.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA TODAY,
25 Feb. 2025
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The bot will see you now: Therapists in the U.S. are getting ready for a battle with A.I. pretenders.—
Natasha Frost,
New York Times,
25 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Milla — a young woman who feels disillusioned by doctors that treat her like a recalcitrant child, directing even conversations about her treatment to her father instead of her — finds false security in quacks selling enemas and juice cleanses.—
Angie Han,
The Hollywood Reporter,
5 Feb. 2025
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Trump’s Insane Clown Posse Cabinet is very close to being filled with a cadre of fools and quacks, goons and thugs.—
S.E. Cupp,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Gould observed that Jerry Falwell had taken up the mountebank’s mission of William Jennings Bryan.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
26 July 2024
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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
Noun
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Next comes the financial institution impostor phase.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
18 Feb. 2025
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In Rankin’s short, Rankin himself plays an impostor posing as the not-so-famous Winnipeg filmmaker Matthew Rankin.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
14 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Charlatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/charlatan. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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