racketeers 1 of 2

noun

plural of racketeer
as in gangsters
a person who gets money from another by using force or threats the racketeer threatened to have his thugs vandalize the shop if the shopkeeper didn't pay him a monthly bribe

Synonyms & Similar Words

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racketeers

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of racketeer
as in extorts

Related Words

Dissimilar 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 racketeers
Noun
Of course, entrusting waste management to gangsters and racketeers has repercussions. — Literary Hub, 8 July 2026 The characters were based on a real family of bookmakers and racketeers who once lived in England. — Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 5 Mar. 2026 When Ferrara was starting out, private investment in low-budget films was spurred by tax loopholes, a way for doctors, dentists, and racketeers to get rid of extra cash that would otherwise wind up in Uncle Sam’s grubby mitts. — Nick Pinkerton, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racketeers
  1. gangsters
  2. blackmails
  3. thugs
  4. forces
  5. blackmailers
  6. muscles
  7. extortionists
  8. pressures
Noun
  • Badly in Love manages to break through because the cast of men and women looking for true love are from the Japanese yankii subculture—juvenile delinquents, motorcycle gangsters, troubled women, and more.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 31 July 2026
  • Remember all those fake memoirs from the early 2000s, by all those writers pretending to be addicts and gangsters and Holocaust survivors?
    — James Parker, The Atlantic, 20 July 2026
Definition of gangsters
Verb
  • The third ended by setting Deborah and Ava on a collision course after Ava blackmails Deborah into becoming head writer of her late-night show, only to render the fallout in cartoonishly broad terms.
    — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 29 May 2026
  • Their antagonism peaked at the end of Season 3, when Deborah achieves her dream of landing a late-night chair and Ava blackmails her way into the head-writer job.
    — Michael Schulman, New Yorker, 29 May 2026
Definition of blackmails
Noun
  • Shortly after his big win, he’s attacked by two thugs in a parking garage.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 July 2026
  • The night of the title fight, Duke is attacked by two thugs who smash his hand with a hammer and, in the ensuing chaos, kill somebody close to him.
    — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 30 July 2026
Definition of thugs
Verb
  • When a storm forces them to stay indoors, old wounds and hidden fears come to the surface, exposing their struggle to connect.
    — Marta Balaga, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026
  • With minor candidates on the ballot, there's a scenario where Colom pulls an upset or at least forces a runoff.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of forces
Noun
  • Despite paying off blackmailers and marrying Lady Olivia Hedges (Danielle Galligan) to protect his secret, Arthur still loses his father’s Parliament seat after getting caught committing election fraud.
    — Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 27 Sep. 2025
  • Grandchildren are being summoned to help grandparents deal with blackmailers.
    — Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Sep. 2025
Definition of blackmailers
Verb
  • Which muscles the farmer’s walk targets The move works nearly the entire body, but leg muscles, the core and shoulder muscles carry most of the load.
    — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
  • One year later, the XFL muscles its way onto the national sports scene with its first two games.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2026
Definition of muscles
Noun
  • The restaurant owner, who did not wish to be identified because his family is still in India, said extortionists have threatened to kill them.
    — Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 8 July 2026
  • As the bomb squad works to disarm it, FBI rushes to catch the extortionists.
    — William Earl, Variety, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of extortionists
Verb
  • The government has offered cash incentives to those willing to leave and pressures others to give up legal efforts by holding them in detention.
    — Cindy Carcamo, Christian Science Monitor, 22 July 2026
  • If a company pressures you into signing a contract before evaluating other options, that’s a red flag.
    — Faith Wakefield, USA Today, 3 July 2026
Definition of pressures

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Cite this Entry

“Racketeers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racketeers. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on racketeers

Nglish: Translation of racketeers for Spanish Speakers

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