scam
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Usage
What does scam mean? A scam is a deceptive scheme or trick used to cheat someone out of something, especially money.Scam is also a verb meaning to cheat someone in such a way.Example: Banks will never call you asking for your credit card number or social security number over the phone. If someone calls and asks for information like that, it’s a scam.
Other Word Forms
- scammer noun
Etymology
Origin of scam
1960–65; originally carnival argot; of obscure origin
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.
Makaruk says Russia's FSB Security Service is issuing its own warnings, telling soldiers not to fall for the scam, but he says the phishing operation has had a disruptive psychological effect.
From BBC
“I felt that I had been managing things pretty well, until the scam,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times
Tube passengers were targeted in a text message scam using homemade "SMS blasters" hidden inside suitcases, a court heard.
From BBC
We uncovered a network of over a thousand bots involved in crypto scams.
From Salon
AFP was granted a look inside the global organisation's multi-pronged cybercrime facility, where specialists pore through massive amounts of data in a bid to prevent the next big ransomware attack or impersonation scam.
From Barron's
Definitions 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.
