Thesaurus results for FLEECING

fleecing 1 of 2

noun

as in extortion

the exaction of a grossly excessive charge for goods or services the fleecing of the summer tourists seems to be a time-honored tradition on that resort island

Synonyms & Similar Words

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fleecing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of fleece

as in cheating

to rob by the use of trickery or threats swindlers who use the telephone to fleece senior citizens out of their savings

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 fleecing

Noun

Thanks to its fleecing of New Orleans during last year’s draft, Atlanta gets either the Pelicans’ or the Bucks’ first-round pick — whichever winds up higher. — Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 6 May 2026

Verb

McColley pushed Parente out onto the street and stomped his boot in the victim’s face five times, crushing Parente’s head into the pavement before fleecing his pockets and fleeing, according to the criminal complaint. — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 13 Oct. 2026 So Rodriguez wants to target corporations for fleecing consumers. — Scott Maxwell, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026 But a motley array of other people—advocates of free love, avant-garde painters, grifters fleecing ex-aristocrats—took advantage of the chaos to promote their own agendas. — Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 14 Sep. 2026 Both men admitted fleecing hundreds of thousands of dollars from a COVID-19 government loan program in 2020 and then transferring some of that money to Veintemilla to help fund the assassination plot. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026 For five years running, Americans have had to live with wallet-fleecing, budget-busting, paycheck-eating inflation – including a painful stretch where the pace of price hikes hit a 40-year high. — Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 25 July 2026 The Thunder even improved before the trade deadline by fleecing the Philadelphia 76ers for a strong rookie scorer (Jared McCain) only for a first-round pick (2026) and three second-round picks. — Mark Medina, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026 The former president of one of the largest homeowners associations in Florida — and her husband — admitted in court on Thursday afternoon to their roles in fleecing $2 million from residents’ monthly maintenance fees. — Grethel Aguila, Sun Sentinel, 1 May 2026 Before that crackdown, the government had brought fraud charges against dozens of people, many of them Somali Americans, who were accused of fleecing a federal program that was meant to provide food to children. — Mark Vancleave, Los Angeles Times, 28 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fleecing

Noun

Imprisoned since 2004 and serving a life sentence, Buchanan was accused of directing drug sales, extortion, gambling and violence across San Diego County and beyond.

— Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Lenderking said the Houthis generate revenue through black-market oil sales, taxation and extortion while also forcing families to provide recruits, allowing the group to continue fighting even if Iranian assistance is cut off.

— Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of extortion

Verb

With all respect to West’s previous cheating-on-television canon, War might be his finest adulterous work.

— Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 24 Oct. 2026
Wood was vindicated three years later, when a league investigation revealed the Astros had been cheating in 2017, stealing signs from a television monitor next to the dugout and relaying them to batters by banging on trash cans.

— Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of cheating

Noun

For Abbott and for Ken Paxton, who beat Cornyn in an eye-gouging, rabbit-punching Republican Senate primary, the answer was, for all intents, the latter.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2026
Other advantages include the fact that ownership of compute may reduce dependency on price fluctuations and gouging.

— Forbes.com, Forbes.com, 27 June 2026

Definition of gouging

Verb

The remarks followed the release of strong quarterly results, with revenue and earnings beating analysts’ expectations despite a 6% downturn in revenue due to pressure squeezing all broadband purveyors.

— Dade Hayes, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026
Fuel expenses are squeezing daily household budgets and tightening cash flow toward the end of the month, with reports indicating a growing number of French employees are requesting payroll advances to manage month end expenses.

— , CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of squeezing

Verb

Getting up from their seats backstage at Bear Shadow, Pandolfi and Falco head over to meet up with the other three Dusters who are plucking a few notes on their instruments under a large maple tree behind the stage.

— Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 20 Oct. 2026
Upending global trade, plucking a dictator out of Caracas, escalating to full-on war with Iran, shredding alliances, courting despots — the major twists and turns of this administration never end.

— Kate Andrews, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of plucking

Verb

That urgency has marked Holden’s prolific output—especially the thrilling first installment of his Supreme Magnetic series in 2025 and 2022’s Joe Frog—as the Harlem rapper uses his street-hustling past to paint an autobiographical portrait.

— Matthew Ritchie, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026
The 30-second teaser sees Jackson hustling around town, making money and recruiting his team of crooks.

— Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of hustling

Verb

Continue reading … CROSSING THE AISLE — Manchin delivers stinging rebuke to Schumer with surprise Senate campaign stop.

— , FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
That money has been transformed into frequent online and television ads either stinging or lauding the two candidates.

— John Aguilar, Denver Post, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of stinging

Verb

Unlike MacKay’s Ferrars, seemingly the more loyal and irreproachable type, both men end up screwing over the Dashwoods in their own ways.

— Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 13 Oct. 2026
In a video from March 4, 2019, her co-worker David Xu can be seen approaching her desk, pouring a substance into the bottle, screwing the lid back on and quickly walking away.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of screwing

Browse Nearby Words

fleeces

fleecing

fleecy

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Fleecing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fleecing. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of fleecing

noun

verb

Example Sentences

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