swindler
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of swindler
First recorded in 1765–75; from German Schwindler “irresponsible person, promoter of wildcat schemes, cheat,” derivative of schwindeln “to be dizzy (hence be dizzy-minded, be irresponsible), defraud,” equivalent to schwind- (cognate with Old English swindan “to languish”) + -(e)l- + -er; -le, -er 1 ( def. )
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.
He is a swindler, a snob and a savage misanthrope.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026
An already-tense relationship appeared to worsen further last week with Mr Altman taunting Mr Musk's offer on X, and Mr Musk retorting by calling his onetime partner a "swindler".
From BBC • Feb. 16, 2025
Orgon, a wealthy bourgeois who has taken a much younger second wife, signs over his soul to Tartuffe, a lecherous swindler who poses as a saint while pursuing a diabolical agenda.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 19, 2024
Baldy, as she was often referred to — and she was a swindler.
From Washington Post • Mar. 26, 2022
And if you held any sympathetic feelings for this greedy, sweaty-jowled, incompetent swindler, then abandon them here.
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
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.
