bilk

American  

[bilk] / bɪlk /

verb (used with object)

1. to defraud; cheat.

   He bilked the government of almost a million dollars.

   Synonyms:

   rook, fleece, dupe, trick, swindle

2. to evade payment of (a debt).

3. to frustrate.

   a career bilked by poor health.

4. to escape from; elude.

   to bilk one's pursuers.

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noun

1. a cheat; swindler.

2. a trick; fraud; deceit.

bilk British  

/ bɪlk /

verb

1. to balk; thwart

2. (often foll by of) to cheat or deceive, esp to avoid making payment to

3. to escape from; elude

4. cribbage to play a card that hinders (one's opponent) from scoring in his or her crib

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noun

1. a swindle or cheat

2. a person who swindles or cheats

Other Word Forms

• bilker noun

Etymology

Origin of bilk

First recorded in 1625–35; of obscure origin

Example Sentences

The numbers out of Minnesota are staggering: Three separate plots to bilk welfare programs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025

Growing up in Washington State, she was in a community production of “The Music Man,” another show about a slick con man trying to bilk small towners.

From New York Times • Mar. 21, 2023

Costello wouldn’t be the only former Washingtonian accused of fabricating his résumé to bilk investors.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 6, 2022

They also face fake brokers who promise to help them send money back to their families in the North but instead just bilk them.

From Washington Post • Apr. 23, 2022

But wouldn't it have been a dirty act to bilk him of his money, all the more as it would have been so easy?

From Wild Justice: Stories of the South Seas by Osbourne, Lloyd

Related Words

• con
• deceive
• defraud
• fleece
• swindle