: a fraudulent or deceptive act or operation
an insurance scam
scammed; scamming; scams
1
: to deceive and defraud (someone)
… the law firm had got the lucrative job of defending the corporate head of a savings and loan that had scammed another thousand or so people out of their savings …—
Joseph Wambaugh
Joseph Wambaugh2
: to obtain (something, such as money) by a scam
A Boston hedge fund manager who scammed millions of dollars from friends, family and other investors in what authorities say was a Ponzi scheme has been sent to prison for more than 14 years.—The Worcester (Massachusetts) Telegram & Gazette
The Worcester (Massachusetts) Telegram & GazetteExamples of scam in a Sentence
Noun
She was the victim of an insurance scam.
a sophisticated credit card scam
Verb
The company scammed hundreds of people out of their life savings.
I could tell they were scamming you and charging too much.
They scammed a lot of money from unwary customers.
Recent Examples on the Web
Alex Vakulov, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
Another alleged scam involved the defendants posing as fictitious real estate owners and tricking victims into thinking a legitimate sale of property was occurring, then pocketing the money.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025
Ars Technica, 4 Mar. 2025
Thailand has previously cut electricity supplies to scam sites near its border with Myanmar in recent years.
—Kocha Olarn, CNN, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scam
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Noun
In June 2023, INTERPOL issued a global warning about the rising activities of human trafficking networks fueled by online job scams.
—Alex Vakulov, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
Another alleged scam involved the defendants posing as fictitious real estate owners and tricking victims into thinking a legitimate sale of property was occurring, then pocketing the money.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025
Verb
If someone is trying to scam you over text in the Google Messages app, the AI will be able to (potentially) recognize that and warn you, just like on a Pixel 6 through 8.
—Ars Technica, 4 Mar. 2025
Thailand has previously cut electricity supplies to scam sites near its border with Myanmar in recent years.
—Kocha Olarn, CNN, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scam
Cite this Entry
“Scam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scam. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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