1
as in hoax
an imitation that is passed off as genuine
tests showed that the "old" map of America was a cleverly made humbug
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in nonsense
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
those UFO stories are a lot of humbug
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3
as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
one humbug after another claimed to be the miraculously surviving daughter of the Russian czar
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as in to fool
to cause to believe what is untrue
humbugged into believing that the bones were the skeleton of a prehistoric human being
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as in nuts
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
a lot of humbuggery about a mean old witch that lives in the woods
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of humbug
IEEE Spectrum, 16 Jan. 2024
Mean One features David Howard Thornton, known for playing Art the Clown in the Terrifier movies, as a familiar-looking green-skinned humbug in a Santa suit, living on a mountain high above the small town town of Newville.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 July 2023
Elizabeth Wolfe and Douglas S. Wood, CNN, 21 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for humbug 
Noun
Well then, the author cannot be blamed for what might be called the worldwide humbug over the robots.
—IEEE Spectrum, 16 Jan. 2024
Mean One features David Howard Thornton, known for playing Art the Clown in the Terrifier movies, as a familiar-looking green-skinned humbug in a Santa suit, living on a mountain high above the small town town of Newville.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 July 2023
Verb
In its verb form, to be humbugged is to be deceived or be the victim of a hoax.
—Elizabeth Wolfe and Douglas S. Wood, CNN, 21 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for humbug
Recent Examples of Synonyms for humbug
Verb
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Don’t be fooled by its cheery name: Happy Face looks haunting.—
Claire Franken,
TVLine,
27 Jan. 2025
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However, phishing is platform-agnostic, relying on fooling you, the user.—
PCMAG,
PCMAG,
24 Jan. 2025
Verb
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In his memoir/self-help book Catching the Big Fish, Lynch called out directors who trick actors into a Method performance.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
27 Jan. 2025
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Cybercriminals set up seemingly legitimate sites that tricked users into downloading malware disguised as harmless software updates.—
Chris Gallagher,
USA TODAY,
25 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Some even provide fake documents to help scammers deceive others.—
Ryan Nawrocki,
Baltimore Sun,
19 Jan. 2025
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On the other hand, disinformation is misleading or false information shared with the intent to deceive.—
Jill Hopke,
The Conversation,
17 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near humbug
Cite this Entry
“Humbug.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/humbug. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.
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