cheat (chēt) v.
cheat·ed, cheat·ing, cheats
v.
tr.
To deceive by trickery; swindle: cheated customers by overcharging them for purchases. To deprive by trickery; defraud: cheated them of their land. To mislead; fool: illusions that cheat the eye. To elude; escape: cheat death. v.
intr.
To act dishonestly; practice fraud. To violate rules deliberately, as in a game: was accused of cheating at cards. Informal To be sexually unfaithful: cheat on a spouse. Baseball To position oneself closer to a certain area than is normal or expected: The shortstop cheated toward second base. n. An act of cheating; a fraud or swindle. One who cheats; a swindler. A computer application, password, or disallowed technique used to advance to a higher skill level in a computer video game. Law Fraudulent acquisition of another's property. Botany An annual European species of brome grass (Bromus secalinus) widely naturalized in temperate regions.
[Middle English cheten, to confiscate, short for acheten, variant of escheten, from eschete, escheat; see escheat.] cheat'er n. |