swindle
verb /ˈswɪndl/
/ˈswɪndl/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they swindle | /ˈswɪndl/ /ˈswɪndl/ |
| he / she / it swindles | /ˈswɪndlz/ /ˈswɪndlz/ |
| past simple swindled | /ˈswɪndld/ /ˈswɪndld/ |
| past participle swindled | /ˈswɪndld/ /ˈswɪndld/ |
| -ing form swindling | /ˈswɪndlɪŋ/ /ˈswɪndlɪŋ/ |
- to cheat somebody in order to get something, especially money, from them
- swindle somebody (out of something) They swindled him out of hundreds of dollars.
- swindle something (out of somebody) They swindled hundreds of dollars out of him.
Word Originlate 18th cent.: back-formation from swindler, from German Schwindler ‘extravagant maker of schemes, swindler’, from schwindeln ‘be giddy’, also ‘tell lies’.