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swindler - 4 dictionary results
swin⋅dle
[swin-dl] 
verb, -dled, -dling, noun –verb (used with object)
| 1. | to cheat (a person, business, etc.) out of money or other assets. |
| 2. | to obtain by fraud or deceit. |
–verb (used without object)
| 3. | to put forward plausible schemes or use unscrupulous trickery to defraud others; cheat. |
–noun
| 4. | an act of swindling or a fraudulent transaction or scheme. |
| 5. | anything deceptive; a fraud: This advertisement is a real swindle. |
Origin:
1775–85; back formation from swindler < G Schwindler irresponsible person, promoter of wildcat schemes, cheat, deriv. of schwindeln to be dizzy (hence dizzy-minded, irresponsible), defraud, equiv. to schwind- (akin to OE swindan to languish) + -(e)l- -le + -er -er 1
1775–85; back formation from swindler < G Schwindler irresponsible person, promoter of wildcat schemes, cheat, deriv. of schwindeln to be dizzy (hence dizzy-minded, irresponsible), defraud, equiv. to schwind- (akin to OE swindan to languish) + -(e)l- -le + -er -er 1
Related forms:
swin⋅dle⋅a⋅ble, adjective
swindler, noun
swin⋅dling⋅ly, adverb
Synonyms:
1. cozen, dupe, trick, gull.
1. cozen, dupe, trick, gull.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To swindler
| swin·dle (swĭn'dl) v. swin·dled, swin·dling, swin·dles v. tr.
To practice fraud as a means of obtaining money or property. n. The act or an instance of swindling. [Back-formation from swindler, one who swindles, from German Schwindler, giddy person, cheat, from schwindeln, to be dizzy, swindle, from Middle High German, from Old High German swintilōn, frequentative of swintan, to disappear.] swin'dler n. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Swindler
Swin"dler\, n. [G. schwindler, fr. schwindlen to be dizzy, to act thoughtlessly, to cheat, fr. schwindel dizziness, fr. schwinden to vanish, to disappear, to dwindle. See Swim to be dizzy.] One who swindles, or defrauds grossly; one who makes a practice of defrauding others by imposition or deliberate artifice; a cheat. Syn: Sharper; rogue. Usage: Swindler, Sharper. These words agree in describing persons who take unfair advantages. A swindler is one who obtains money or goods under false pretenses. A sharper is one who cheats by sharp practice, as in playing at cards or staking what he can not pay. Fraud and injustice soon follow, and the dignity of the British merchant is sunk in the scandalous appellation of a swindler. --V. Knox. Perhaps you 'll think I act the same As a sly sharper plays his game. --Cotton.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : swindler
Spanish:
estafador, timador,
German:
der, *die Schwindler(in),
Japanese:
ペテン師
swindler
1774, from Ger. Schwindler "giddy person, extravagant speculator, cheat," from schwindeln "to be giddy, act extravagantly, swindle," from O.H.G. swintilon "be giddy," frequentative form of swintan "to languish, disappear;" cognate with O.E. swindan, and probably with swima "dizziness." Said to have been introduced in London by Ger. Jews c.1762. swindle is a back-formation attested from 1782 as a verb, 1833 as a noun.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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