fraud

[frawd]

noun

1. deceit, trickery, sharp practice, or breach of confidence, perpetrated for profit or to gain some unfair or dishonest advantage.

2. a particular instance of such deceit or trickery.

   mail fraud; election frauds.

3. any deception, trickery, or humbug.

   That diet book is a fraud and a waste of time.

   Synonyms: hoax, wile

4. a person who makes deceitful pretenses; sham; poseur.

fraud

/ frɔːd /

noun

1. deliberate deception, trickery, or cheating intended to gain an advantage

2. an act or instance of such deception

3. something false or spurious

   his explanation was a fraud

4. informal,  a person who acts in a false or deceitful way

Other Word Forms

• fraudful adjective
• fraudfully adverb
• antifraud adjective
• prefraud noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of fraud¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English fraude, from Old French, from Medieval Latin fraud-, stem of fraus “deceit, injury”

Word History and Origins

Origin of fraud¹

C14: from Old French fraude , from Latin fraus deception

Synonym Study

See duplicity.

Example Sentences

When it comes to preventing financial fraud, many experts optimistically predicted that AI would serve as the “silver bullet” that could halt bad actors who aim to exploit financial institutions and businesses alike.

Read more on MarketWatch

Fallen Austrian property tycoon Rene Benko went on trial on Tuesday over alleged fraud, the first charges in a wide-ranging investigation into the insolvency of his former real estate empire.

Read more on Barron's

The bank didn’t address its exposure to Tricolor, an auto lending company that collapsed in September amid allegations of fraud and accounting impropriety.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Earlier this year, the co-founder and another top company official agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud charges and scheming to bilk investors using falsified documents.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

China has warned its citizens for years about cyber fraud -- from the scams themselves to jobs posted online that lure people into the compounds.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• blackmail 
• deceit 
• extortion 
• graft 
• hoax 
• misrepresentation 
• scam