— swindleable , adj. — swindler , n. — swindlingly , adv.
/swin"dl/ , v. , swindled, swindling , n.
v.t.
1. to cheat (a person, business, etc.) out of money or other assets.
2. to obtain by fraud or deceit.
v.i.
3. to put forward plausible schemes or use unscrupulous trickery to defraud others; cheat.
n.
4. an act of swindling or a fraudulent transaction or scheme.
5. anything deceptive; a fraud: This advertisement is a real swindle.
[ 1775-85; back formation from swindler Schwindler irresponsible person, promoter of wildcat schemes, cheat, deriv. of schwindeln to be dizzy (hence dizzy-minded, irresponsible), defraud, equiv. to schwind- (akin to OE swindan to languish) + -( e ) l- -LE + -er -ER 1 ]
Syn. 1. cozen, dupe, trick, gull.