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
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
But in Wicked, he's elevated to an even more sinister place — not merely a charlatan, but a fraud who has seized power and wants to use the magic of others to create a totalitarian world that answers to his every whim.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
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
But in Wicked, he's elevated to an even more sinister place — not merely a charlatan, but a fraud who has seized power and wants to use the magic of others to create a totalitarian world that answers to his every whim.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for charlatan
Noun
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Quantum computing could allow companies to analyze risk, detect fraud, and predict market trends better than ever before.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes,
17 Mar. 2025
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Deputy Sheriffs are responsible for executing eviction notices, orders of protection, and investigating financial and tax fraud.—
Thomas Tracy,
New York Daily News,
17 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Color choices include oatmeal, cream, and silver – and the shams are sold separately.—
Terri Williams,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
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Extended deterrence was a sham, and the people who relied on it were suckers.—
Gideon Rose,
Foreign Affairs,
8 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Within hours of that bill being signed, lawmakers in South Dakota pushed forward their own legislation seeking to impose civil and criminal penalties for individuals and groups who share deep fakes intended to influence a political campaign.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
12 Mar. 2025
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International music superstar Celine Dion has issued a warning to fans to beware of fakes.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
EW.com,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The bot will see you now: Therapists in the U.S. are getting ready for a battle with A.I. pretenders.—
Natasha Frost,
New York Times,
25 Feb. 2025
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Without a bit more heart and soul, the spinoff is just a pretender in a nicely tailored suit.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA TODAY,
25 Feb. 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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Gould observed that Jerry Falwell had taken up the mountebank’s mission of William Jennings Bryan.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
26 July 2024
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Now, this pallid Color Purple epitomizes the artistic dearth of an era when a cultural mountebank like Winfrey uses race and feminist guile to cheat us of America’s most creative achievements.—
Armond White,
National Review,
3 Jan. 2024
Noun
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That specific kind of grift is known as an impostor scam.—
Alana Semuels,
TIME,
18 Sep. 2024
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At minimum, the Richards bit — which, admittedly, some liked more than others — rolls out a red carpet for Leon to steal the show as a Jewish-doctor impostor trying to snap Richards into it after his Groats diagnosis.—
Larry Fitzmaurice,
Vulture,
8 Apr. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Charlatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/charlatan. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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