tricksters

noun

plural of trickster
1
as in cheats
a dishonest person who uses clever means to cheat others out of something of value a heartless trickster swindled the elderly woman out of her life savings

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in magicians
one who practices tricks and illusions for entertainment a very adept trickster who used mirrors to make huge items—even buildings—seem to disappear

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of tricksters Like the tricksters of myth, there’s depth to their slyness. — Big Think, 5 Feb. 2026 Keep your heart open, but be mindful of tricksters and projection. — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026 Like his ancestors, once known as prairie wolves, as song dogs, as tricksters and gods, who emerged from the deserts and high plains. — Literary Hub, 12 May 2026 Eating disorders are master tricksters. — Eden Laase, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2026 In addition to taste testing at the wine and beer tents, see live performances by musical artists, polka dancers and BMX tricksters. — Caroline Ritzie, The Enquirer, 21 Aug. 2025 Floods, tricksters, battles with monsters, creation and apocalypse—sometimes the resemblances are uncanny. — Manvir Singh, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025 Many of the short form videos are skits featuring cartoonish depictions of Putin, Khamenei and Kim Jong Un posing as tricksters that prank, imprison or kill Trump and Netanyahu. — Rashi Shrivastava, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tricksters
  1. cheats
  2. magicians
  3. dodgers
  4. sharks
  5. swindlers
Noun
  • Sometimes, the fourth-grader asks Robo-Dad for Minecraft cheats.
    — Ella Chakarian, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2026
  • Migrant welfare cheats exposed!
    — The Hill, The Hill, 5 May 2026
Definition of cheats
Noun
  • Every twenty minutes cliff divers, costumed characters, and magicians put on performances and interact with diners.
    — Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN Money, 5 July 2026
  • Hang out with sheep, meet magicians and clowns and explore the amusement park.
    — Cole Premo, CBS News, 29 June 2026
Definition of magicians
Noun
  • Ukraine faces severe personnel shortages with around 200,000 military desertions and 2 million draft-dodgers, threatening its ability to sustain the war against Russia’s 2022 invasion.
    — Kirsten Grieshaber, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2026
  • But my collection intentionally ignored the fraudulent exploits of billionaire heirs, tax dodgers and corporate magnates — defense contracts, government lobbying, bank accounts in Switzerland, shell companies in Panama, citizenship of Antigua and political asylum in London.
    — Snigdha Poonam, The Dial, 28 Oct. 2025
Definition of dodgers
Noun
  • But behind that iconic shape is a life history strategy that makes the species especially vulnerable to fishing pressure; these sharks grow slowly, mature late and produce relatively few young over their lifetime.
    — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • The group stage would be a series of blowouts, the sharks would devour the minnows.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2026
Definition of sharks
Noun
  • The decade ended tumultuously, with the Osmond family’s fortune drained by a series of swindlers and grifters.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 21 Apr. 2026
  • This scam, according to Kent, could be proliferated with the use of AI, which can allow swindlers to enroll in many different college programs at once.
    — Peter D'Abrosca, FOXNews.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Definition of swindlers

Browse Nearby Words

trickster
tricksters
tricksy
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Cite this Entry

“Tricksters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tricksters. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on tricksters

Nglish: Translation of tricksters for Spanish Speakers

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