cheat

[ cheet ]

verb (used with object)

1. to defraud; swindle:

   He cheated her out of her inheritance.

   Synonyms: fool, hoax, con, gull, delude, dupe, mislead

2. to deceive; influence by fraud:

   He cheated us into believing him a hero.

3. to elude; deprive of something expected:

   He cheated the law by suicide.

verb (used without object)

1. to practice fraud or deceit:

   She cheats without regrets.

2. to violate rules or regulations:

   He cheats at cards.

3. to take an examination or test in a dishonest way, as by improper access to answers.
4. Informal. to be sexually unfaithful (often followed by on ):

   Her husband knew she had been cheating all along. He cheated on his wife.

noun

1. a person who acts dishonestly, deceives, or defrauds:

   He is a cheat and a liar.

   Synonyms: swindler, mountebank, phony, fake, fraud, charlatan, dodger, sharper, trickster

2. a fraud; swindle; deception:

   The game was a cheat.

   Synonyms: hoax, trick, artifice, imposture

3. Law. the fraudulent obtaining of another's property by a pretense or trick.
4. an impostor:

   The man who passed as an earl was a cheat.

cheat

/ tʃiːt /

verb

1. to deceive or practise deceit, esp for one's own gain; trick or swindle (someone)
2. intr to obtain unfair advantage by trickery, as in a game of cards
3. tr to escape or avoid (something unpleasant) by luck or cunning

   to cheat death

4. informal.
   whenintr, usually foll by on to be sexually unfaithful to (one's wife, husband, or lover)

noun

1. a person who cheats
2. a deliberately dishonest transaction, esp for gain; fraud
3. informal.
   sham
4. law the obtaining of another's property by fraudulent means
5. the usual US name for rye-brome

Derived Forms

• ˈcheatable, adjective
• ˈcheatingly, adverb
• ˈcheater, noun

Other Words From

• cheata·ble adjective
• cheating·ly adverb
• outcheat verb (used with object)
• un·cheated adjective
• un·cheating adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of cheat¹

1325–75; Middle English chet (noun) (aphetic for achet, variant of eschet escheat ); cheten to escheat, derivative of chet (noun)

Word History and Origins

Origin of cheat¹

C14: short for escheat

Synonym Study

Cheat, deceive, trick, victimize refer to the use of fraud or artifice deliberately to hoodwink or obtain an unfair advantage over someone. Cheat implies conducting matters fraudulently, especially for profit to oneself: to cheat at cards. Deceive suggests deliberately misleading or deluding, to produce misunderstanding or to prevent someone from knowing the truth: to deceive one's parents. To trick is to deceive by a stratagem, often of a petty, crafty, or dishonorable kind: to trick someone into signing a note. To victimize is to make a victim of; the emotional connotation makes the cheating, deception, or trickery seem particularly dastardly: to victimize a blind man.

Example Sentences

“Investors should be able to trust those to whom they give their hard-earned money, and not worry that those people will lie, cheat, and steal.”

From Los Angeles Times

Now that you understand the stakes, here’s a cheat sheet to the types of pots and pans you might encounter in the marketplace.

From Salon

As an advocate for better food in schools and hospitals, she sees her love of “cheats” as a tool to help institutions create better meals without overburdening their staff.

From Salon

Lists inevitably leave off the worthy, even a top 10 list that cheats with 11 items.

From Los Angeles Times

And these others did not cheat on their taxes or lie while trying to buy a gun: Couldn’t the president act to shield them from retribution too?

From Salon

Related Words

• bilk
• con
• deceive
• defraud
• delude
• dupe
• fleece
• hoodwink
• mislead
• swindle
• trick
• victimize