Thesaurus results for SWINDLING

swindling 1 of 2

noun

as in defrauding

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swindling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of swindle

as in cheating

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

Example 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 swindling

Noun

Her lawyers, Giuseppe Iannaccone and Marcello Bana, have denied there was a case of grand larceny, which would include fraud and swindling. — Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 14 Jan. 2026

Verb

He’s accused of swindling an elderly Tarrant County resident out of between $30,000 and $150,000, the indictment states. — Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Sep. 2026 Far from fighting scams in America’s federal health system, this president has granted clemency to hundreds of people convicted of health care fraud, including more than 10 executives convicted of specifically swindling Medicare. — Max Taves, Mercury News, 14 Aug. 2026 The company argued attorneys were swindling their own clients, inflating medical bills of car crash victims to increase the value of the settlement and then pocketing a hefty chunk of the payouts. — Rebecca Ellis, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2026 Elsaid is accused of bilking the medical assistance program out of over $182,000, while Agwa is accused of swindling over $94,000 from the program. — Riley Moser, CBS News, 23 June 2026 His initial 37-count indictment accused him of swindling investors of tens of millions of dollars, lying to financial institutions to obtain funds to buy a luxury yacht and failing to pay millions in personal and payroll taxes. — Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 15 May 2026 The series chronicles the exploits of Kuashal Niroula and Danny Garcia as they are roped into an impressive group of eccentric, like-minded con artists to form the ‘gay grifters’ swindling a bevy of unsuspecting victims out of millions in cash and property over a decade plus. — Kate Aurthur, Variety, 10 Apr. 2026 Named one of the 10 Best Books of 2025 by The New York Times, Angel Down follows Private Cyril Bagger, who has managed to survive the unspeakable horrors of WWI through his wits and deception, swindling fellow soldiers at every opportunity. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 26 Jan. 2026 From allegedly stiffing employees to allegedly swindling banks The FBI alleged that behind the scenes, McDonnell was running an even bigger con. — Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 29 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for swindling

Noun

Her defrauding of the Foundation, however, surpassed that figure as FBI agents dug deeper into her theft.

— Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 15 Dec. 2025
And what could be more legitimate of a cause for removing a governor of the nation's central bank—which is, among other things, the lender of last resort to the country's financial institutions—than the alleged defrauding of those very financial institutions?

— Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025

Definition of defrauding

Noun

The United States will compete in the relay, which starts with a section of skinning — essentially racing uphill with a free heel and climbing skins glued to the skis.

— The Sports Desk, NBC news, 18 Feb. 2026
Nicknamed skimo, ski mountaineering combines uphill skiing (skinning), technical climbing (bootpacking) and downhill skiing.

— Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 1 Feb. 2026

Definition of skinning

Verb

That urgency has marked Holden’s prolific output—especially the thrilling first installment of his Supreme Magnetic series in 2025 and 2022’s Joe Frog—as the Harlem rapper uses his street-hustling past to paint an autobiographical portrait.

— Matthew Ritchie, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026
The 30-second teaser sees Jackson hustling around town, making money and recruiting his team of crooks.

— Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of hustling

Verb

Democrats have hammered on meat as well, but mainly just as one of the staples that cost more under Trump, squeezing voters’ pocketbooks.

— Nicholas Riccardi, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026
Democrats have hammered on meat as well, but mainly just as one of the staples that cost more under Trump, squeezing voters' pocketbooks.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of squeezing

Verb

LLMs are great at finding blowups that exist—at searching the infinite landscape of fluid scenarios and plucking out the precise situation that breaks the equations.

— Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2026
Fortunately, many dahlia insect problems in September can be solved by walking through the garden in the morning and plucking the offending insects off the plants by hand, then dropping them into a container of soapy water.

— Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of plucking

Verb

That money has been transformed into frequent online and television ads either stinging or lauding the two candidates.

— John Aguilar, Denver Post, 7 Oct. 2026
Indy struggled against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in its season opener, then took a stinging 33-30 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

— Elise Devlin, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of stinging

Verb

Unlike MacKay’s Ferrars, seemingly the more loyal and irreproachable type, both men end up screwing over the Dashwoods in their own ways.

— Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 13 Oct. 2026
In a video from March 4, 2019, her co-worker David Xu can be seen approaching her desk, pouring a substance into the bottle, screwing the lid back on and quickly walking away.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of screwing

Browse Nearby Words

swindles

swindling

swine

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Style

“Swindling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swindling. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of swindling

noun

verb

Example Sentences

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