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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Recent Examples of charlatan
There are many ethical and honest and capable mediums out there, but there are also a lot of charlatans, and this is their hook.
—
Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025
Worst of all, charlatans and ideologues are being placed in positions of power.
—Big Think, 20 Feb. 2025
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
Also, not every pollster is a charlatan, but questioning random samples of voters is not rocket science and it is usually done by part-time workers who gather data from citizens who share their thoughts on political races.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 14 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for charlatan
Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025
Worst of all, charlatans and ideologues are being placed in positions of power.
—Big Think, 20 Feb. 2025
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
Also, not every pollster is a charlatan, but questioning random samples of voters is not rocket science and it is usually done by part-time workers who gather data from citizens who share their thoughts on political races.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 14 Dec. 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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There are plenty of superhero properties out there that fall into the trap of having their antagonists do something heinous to prove that their otherwise just reasons are a sham, but surely in this case, if Maximus (Iwan Rheon) hadn’t staged a coup, another of the Inhuman subjects would’ve. 23.—
Nola Pfau,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2025
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The sunny set includes a quilt in twin/twin XL, full/queen, and king sizes and matching shams to create a cohesive look in your space.—
Megan Schaltegger,
Better Homes & Gardens,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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White has a knack to get to the foul line with creative fakes.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
15 Apr. 2025
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Historically, trade restrictions drive up the cost of authentic goods, creating the perfect conditions for counterfeiters to flood the market with cheaper, harder-to-detect fakes, according to Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder and CEO of Entrupy, an authentication service.—
Jessica Dickler,
CNBC,
14 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Every decision carries weight, and in a league where the line between contender and pretender is razor-thin, there’s little room for error.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
6 Jan. 2025
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The only saving grace for City is that there is no clear pretender to take its place as the top dog in English soccer.—
Joe Prince-Wright, NBC Sports,
NBC News,
20 Dec. 2024
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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These kinds of supportive environments can reduce impostor feelings and create space for growth.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
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Once hired, the impostor can install malware to demand ransom from a company, or steal its customer data, trade secrets or funds, according to Balasubramaniyan.—
Hugh Son,
CNBC,
8 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Charlatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/charlatan. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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