Thesaurus results for SWINDLE

Q: How does the verb 'swindle' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of swindle are cheat , cozen , and defraud . While all these words mean "to get something by dishonesty or deception," swindle implies large-scale cheating by misrepresentation or abuse of confidence. // swindled of their savings by con artists

Q: When would 'cheat' be a good substitute for 'swindle'?

The words cheat and swindle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, cheat suggests using trickery that escapes observation. // cheated me out of a dollar

Q: When might 'cozen' be a better fit than 'swindle'?

The synonyms cozen and swindle are sometimes interchangeable, but cozen implies artful persuading or flattering to attain a thing or a purpose. // always able to cozen her grandfather out of a few dollars

Q: When could 'defraud' be used to replace 'swindle'?

The meanings of defraud and swindle largely overlap; however, defraud stresses depriving one of his or her rights and usually connotes deliberate perversion of the truth. // defrauded of her inheritance by an unscrupulous lawyer

swindle 1 of 2

noun

Definition of swindle next

as in scam

an instance of the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value identity theft has become one of the most frequent and feared swindles of our time

Synonyms & Similar Words

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swindle

2 of 2

verb

ˈswin-dᵊl

as in to cheat

to rob by the use of trickery or threats hundreds of people were swindled out of their savings, and all they had to show for it were fake land deeds

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb swindle contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of swindle are cheat, cozen, and defraud. While all these words mean "to get something by dishonesty or deception," swindle implies large-scale cheating by misrepresentation or abuse of confidence.

swindled of their savings by con artists

When would cheat be a good substitute for swindle?

The words cheat and swindle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, cheat suggests using trickery that escapes observation.

cheated me out of a dollar

When might cozen be a better fit than swindle?

The synonyms cozen and swindle are sometimes interchangeable, but cozen implies artful persuading or flattering to attain a thing or a purpose.

always able to cozen her grandfather out of a few dollars

When could defraud be used to replace swindle?

The meanings of defraud and swindle largely overlap; however, defraud stresses depriving one of his or her rights and usually connotes deliberate perversion of the truth.

defrauded of her inheritance by an unscrupulous lawyer

Examples 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 swindle

Noun

After winning an election marred by intimidation and manipulation of the voter rolls, among other electoral swindles, Mugabe’s government reverted to its default setting and embarked on a reckless spending spree that swelled the budget deficit to 25 percent of GDP. —

Tendai Biti, Foreign Affairs, 20 Aug. 2019 Later Clark was asked if a salad oil swindle every few years might be a clever idea. —

Phil Wahba, Fortune, 22 Sep. 2024

Verb

In high school, Combs was swindling his classmates out of their spare change, in addition to creating other hustles for himself. —

Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 31 Oct. 2024 And that also may reduce the chances of them getting swindled. —

Jeanne Sahadi, CNN, 23 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for swindle

Recent Examples of Synonyms for swindle

Noun

Life advice Olivier Morin/AFP via Getty Images Fraudsters are improving their scams with the help of artificial intelligence.

Brittney Melton, NPR, 27 Dec. 2024
Some scams are done via hardware, while others can be done online.

Marley Malenfant, USA TODAY, 26 Dec. 2024