defrauded

verb

past tense of defraud
as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats senior citizens generally were too smart to fall for the fast-talking salesman's attempts to defraud them

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 defrauded Federal prosecutors allege Mwangi defrauded First Financial Bank while seeking financing in 2023 to purchase two companies in Texas. — Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026 Five residents of Broward and Palm Beach County are among seven people accused in a nearly $100 million scheme that defrauded workers’ compensation insurers through shell companies, state officials announced Wednesday. — Angie Dimichele, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026 Between 2019 and 2023, FBI Director Kash Patel explained during the news conference, the scheme defrauded over 6,000 Americans to the tune of $400 million. — Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2026 Some immigrants requested more time before their next hearings, presenting evidence of having been defrauded by unscrupulous attorneys profiled in local news reports. — ABC News, 1 Aug. 2026 The institutions defrauded Veterans Affairs while cheating thousands out of career training, with some offering training on how to grow grass and make fake rocks, a Post investigation found. — Andrew Ba Tran, Washington Post, 22 July 2026 The Clippers continued to put the onus of guilt onto Joe Sanberg, the co-founder of Aspiration who has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for his role in a long-term scheme that defrauded lenders and investors of more than $248 million. — Law Murray, New York Times, 9 July 2026 According to court records, between July 2024 and August 2025, the brothers and unnamed co-conspirators orchestrated an identity theft ring that defrauded SNAP programs in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and other states. — Joe Marusak july 2, Charlotte Observer, 2 July 2026 The charge alleges a person knowingly defrauded another by using false or misleading information to obtain money, property, credit or a loan. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defrauded
  1. cheated
  2. plucked
  3. stung
  4. hustled
  5. squeezed
  6. screwed
  7. swindled
  8. deceived
Verb
  • Child safety advocates and some parents have welcomed age restrictions, while privacy groups say the rules can be cheated and that forcing users to supply identification raises privacy concerns.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Not to be cheated in front of the largest assembly of Hall of Famers since the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium, Schwarber flew out twice to deep center field.
    — Dan Hayes, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of cheated
Verb
  • He was plucked out of retirement to take on the demanding role of helping in the reconstruction of Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Doubs plucked the ball over Gonzalez, who had successfully backed him near the boundary but couldn’t box out the 6-foot-2 receiver entirely.
    — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of plucked
Verb
  • Spray the nest from a distance to reduce the chances of being stung.
    — Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2026
  • More than 3,100 people have been stung at Bolsa Chica and Huntington State Beach so far this year, which is at least double last year's total.
    — Michele Gile, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of stung
Verb
  • Hate crime charges have been filed against a man who disrupted Shabbat services in Manhattan's Central Synagogue and struck two people while being hustled outside Friday night.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Hong’s early capture of the data-center issue, which was not especially ideological, is a good example of how consistently the Party’s much larger traditional wing has been out-hustled.
    — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of hustled
Verb
  • Silver is now in its fifth straight year of structural deficit, squeezed by solar, electric vehicles, and the hardware powering AI.
    — Rob Kaplan, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Affordability does not improve when Washington adds trillions to the debt while working families are still getting squeezed.
    — Terry Collins, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of squeezed
Verb
  • The hardest physical part was actually taking down the old blinds, which had been screwed tightly into the window frame years prior.
    — Scott Kramer, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • But the war needs to end because every day that the war continues, America gets weaker, Iran gets stronger, and people here in the United States get screwed, as prices go up, and up and up.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of screwed
Verb
  • Other gamblers just don’t want to get swindled, so anything that smacks too clearly of insider trading can get you in trouble.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026
  • While the men whom Chen allegedly swindled began to grow suspicious of her actions around 2024, the Clark County Marriage Bureau reported her to the police, resulting in the launch of an investigation around the same time.
    — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026
Definition of swindled
Verb
  • Now some say the operation has left them feeling deceived and questioning whether the White House considered their safety.
    — Scott Nover, Washington Post, 15 Aug. 2026
  • White House pool reporters deceived Advertisement McDonald pushed back on the idea that Air Force One and the people still aboard it, including journalists, were left exposed.
    — Philip Wang, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of deceived

Browse Nearby Words

defraud
defrauded
defrauder
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Defrauded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defrauded. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of devolve

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All