as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
the famed faith healer turned out to be a charlatan
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of charlatan
That’s because the agency’s duty is to stand in the way of businesses desiring to push unsafe and ineffective nostrums at unwary consumers, and also in the way of a perverse idea that personal freedom includes the freedom to be gulled by charlatans.
—
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2025
One who comes to her full power when she is exiled by a charlatan, by a cruel leader.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 26 Nov. 2024
The good, sincere members would flourish and the charlatans, the folks who over-promise to their constituents, would not.
—Gary Franks, Boston Herald, 20 Jan. 2024
Tartuffe, a charismatic charlatan, insinuates himself into the lives of a wealthy family, setting off a chain reaction of disruption and pandemonium.
—Del Mar Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2025
One who comes to her full power when she is exiled by a charlatan, by a cruel leader.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 26 Nov. 2024
The good, sincere members would flourish and the charlatans, the folks who over-promise to their constituents, would not.
—Gary Franks, Boston Herald, 20 Jan. 2024
Tartuffe, a charismatic charlatan, insinuates himself into the lives of a wealthy family, setting off a chain reaction of disruption and pandemonium.
—Del Mar Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for charlatan
Noun
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The panel also agreed Way acted with malice, oppression or fraud, and awarded her another $250,000 in punitive damages.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
10 Apr. 2025
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Robinson faces five felonies: concealment of a death, identity theft, two counts of financial card theft, financial card fraud and car theft.—
Julia Coin,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The votes were widely viewed as a sham and heavily criticized by the US at the time as well as by allies in Europe.—
Anna Chernova,
CNN,
24 Mar. 2025
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Six elections since have been widely dismissed as shams that concealed rising discontent.—
Nataliya Vasilyeva,
New York Times,
25 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Among them, pyramid schemes, membership fee fakes, credit repair cons, dubious health offers, fictitious diploma schools and illegitimate gaming services.—
Charles Selle,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Apr. 2025
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Always double-check URLs and email addresses to spot fakes.—
Alex Vakulov,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Chasten passions and impulses, the Indian texts counsel, in order to be able to distinguish opportunity from danger, friend from pretender, good advice from folly.—
John Nemec,
The Conversation,
7 Apr. 2025
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In college basketball, what separates contenders from pretenders is a strong bench—a reliable sixth man, role players who know their purpose, and a culture that emphasizes development across the roster.—
Julian Hayes II,
Forbes.com,
30 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Famous athlete revealed as Fuzzy Peas on Masked Singer while Ken Jeong shocks with Lord Farquaad look on wild Shrek Night With a final dramatic flourish of his cape and a quack, Lucky Duck departed, and it was revealed that Coral would be joining Paparazzo in the final six.—
Lauren Huff,
EW.com,
27 Feb. 2025
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Milla — a young woman who feels disillusioned by doctors that treat her like a recalcitrant child, directing even conversations about her treatment to her father instead of her — finds false security in quacks selling enemas and juice cleanses.—
Angie Han,
The Hollywood Reporter,
5 Feb. 2025
Noun
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With tariffs on pharmaceuticals, the mountebank of Mar-A-Lago wants to punish a small democracy of 5.3 million people that for the past 60 years has worked its way into the top table of drug research and production: Ireland.—
Kevin Rennie,
Hartford Courant,
29 Mar. 2025
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Gould observed that Jerry Falwell had taken up the mountebank’s mission of William Jennings Bryan.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
26 July 2024
Noun
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Similarly, a 67-year-old from San Diego was tricked out of her life savings when an AI impostor gang posed as Keanu Reeves, also raising awareness about romance scams impacting the elderly.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
12 Feb. 2025
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Speaking of which … How long has Helly been an impostor?—
Brian Grubb,
Vulture,
7 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Charlatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/charlatan. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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