mountebank
[ moun-tuh-bangk ]
/ ˈmaʊn təˌbæŋk /
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noun
a person who sells quack medicines, as from a platform in public places, attracting and influencing an audience by tricks, storytelling, etc.
any charlatan or quack.
verb (used without object)
to act or operate as a mountebank.
SYNONYMS FOR mountebank
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Origin of mountebank
OTHER WORDS FROM mountebank
moun·te·bank·er·y [moun-tuh-bangk-uh-ree], /ˈmaʊn təˌbæŋk ə ri/, nounWords nearby mountebank
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for mountebank
British Dictionary definitions for mountebank
mountebank
/ (ˈmaʊntɪˌbæŋk) /
noun
(formerly) a person who sold quack medicines in public places
a charlatan; fake
verb
(intr) to play the mountebank
Derived forms of mountebank
mountebankery, nounWord Origin for mountebank
C16: from Italian montambanco a climber on a bench, from montare to mount ² + banco bench (see also bank 1)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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