as in gangster
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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as in to blackmail
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of racketeer
Time, 25 July 2023
Stephanie was cunning—even ruthless—and a notorious racketeer.
—The New Yorker, 4 Jan. 2023
Lilly Price, Baltimore Sun, 18 Apr. 2023
Musk, a noted fan of Dogecoin and related memes, was named in lawsuit filed last year accusing him of racketeering over his promotion of the cryptocurrency.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 5 Apr. 2023
See all Example Sentences for racketeer 
Noun
As revealed in previously undisclosed FBI files, Manton fraternized with racketeers and accepted large loans and gifts from such unsavory sources.
—Time, 25 July 2023
Stephanie was cunning—even ruthless—and a notorious racketeer.
—The New Yorker, 4 Jan. 2023
Verb
Cherry pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy charges in June.
—Lilly Price, Baltimore Sun, 18 Apr. 2023
Musk, a noted fan of Dogecoin and related memes, was named in lawsuit filed last year accusing him of racketeering over his promotion of the cryptocurrency.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 5 Apr. 2023
See all Example Sentences for racketeer
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racketeer
Noun
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Many Japanese action films are too much about fantasy, either Yakuza [gangsters] or serial killers.Patrick Frater, Variety, 1 Nov. 2024
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Liam Neeson, in perhaps his final appearance in an action film, portrays a gangster trying to make amends.Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 30 Oct. 2024
Noun
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The climax, in which Dwight and his crew beat a group of nameless Chinese immigrant thugs into submission after they’re used as cannon fodder by Cal Thresher to sabotage Dwight’s wind turbines, is more important to the plot and even uglier.Sean T. Collins, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024
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Like other Diablo games, Hades would support cooperative multiplayer, but in the Arkham games, groups of thugs would circle around the Dark Knight, comic-book style, waiting to be punched in the face.Jason Schreier, WIRED, 8 Oct. 2024
Verb
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That investigation began after Torres told police that a 21-year-old Chicago man continued to extort him — threatening to release nude photos and videos — if Torres failed to meet his financial demands.Devan Patel, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024
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Typically, scammers will gain access to these accounts to help steal someone's identity, share posts about their scams or to extort a user into paying a ransom demand.Sam Sabin, Axios, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
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This tyranny will be even greater felt if either a victorious GOP or the Democrats overturn the filibuster rule of 60 votes to muscle sweeping legislation out of the Senate.Stephen Moore, Orange County Register, 6 Oct. 2024
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All of that, plus fuel, means the spacecraft tips the scales at approximately 13,000 lbs., which requires a bruiser of a rocket to muscle it off the ground.Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 4 Oct. 2024
Verb
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The suit, which didn’t say how much White paid the Mexican plaintiffs, alleges that he was coerced into making the settlements.Tim Stelloh, NBC News, 4 Nov. 2024
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Musk has defended the giveaways, saying in a town hall that it was not meant to coerce people to register to vote.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Loading your audio article In January, a security camera captured unnerving footage: what appeared to be a bear had forced its way into a Rolls Royce parked outside a home in the Southern California resort community of Lake Arrowhead, gouged the seats and thrashed the interior.Grant Stringer, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
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After leading a relatively peaceful life as a farmer in northern Africa with his wife, Lucius is forced into slavery and ends up becoming a gladiator like his father.Irenie Forshaw, theweek, 13 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Sam menaces Brian Cox in a home-invasion freakout that anchors the end of the film.Bethy Squires, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2024
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In Yemen, the Houthis’ missiles and drones menaced maritime traffic in the Red Sea.Ali Vaez, Foreign Affairs, 11 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Racketeer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racketeer. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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