fraudulent
Americanadjective
-
characterized by, involving, or proceeding from fraud, as actions, enterprise, methods, or gains.
a fraudulent scheme to evade taxes.
-
given to or using fraud, as a person; cheating; dishonest.
- Synonyms:
- unscrupulous, underhanded, crooked
-
false or deceiving; phony; misleading.
They’ve concocted a series of fraudulent pretexts for the invasion that collapse instantly on examination.
adjective
-
acting with or having the intent to deceive
-
relating to or proceeding from fraud or dishonest action
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fraudulent
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin fraudulentus; see fraud, -ulent
Explanation
Something fraudulent is intentionally false and meant to harm or deceive. That email message from the Sultan of Brunei offering you millions of dollars just might be fraudulent. From the fact that the word fraudulent is frequently teamed with the word scheme, you can get the idea that something fraudulent is sneaky, snarky, and just plain wrong. A fraudulent scheme is one designed to gain something at the expense of someone else. It might be small — trying to use an expired coupon — or bigger — lying on your taxes. Whatever its form, planning something fraudulent is cheating, and it's wrong.
Vocabulary lists containing fraudulent
Fake It 'Til You Make It: Synonyms for "False"
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"The Ransom of Red Chief" by O. Henry
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"Bones" Producer's Lawsuit Full of Great Vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The U.S. sanctioned 10 individuals and one entity for their alleged role in North Korean efforts to place fraudulent remote information technology workers at U.S. companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
We looked back in the database, external over the last 20 years and found it has tallied 325 convictions as a result of the fraudulent use of postal ballots.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
On October 14, MBL and NRK had also threatened to sue Meta, accusing the American giant of profiting from fraudulent advertisements impersonating them in order to defraud internet users.
From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026
Both were among the 28 people charged with federal election-related crimes Monday, including fraudulent voter registration and making false statements in a naturalization application.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
He listened, his eyes fixed on mine, apparently entranced by these fraudulent recollections.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
