chiseler
Noun: A dishonest person who cheats or swindles others, typically through deceitful schemes or fraudulent means. This term often implies someone who engages in petty or sharp practices to gain an unfair advantage, especially in financial matters.
The term "chiseler" is used to describe a person who acts dishonestly. It is a somewhat informal and derogatory label. * It is commonly applied to someone who cheats on prices, debts, or in business dealings. * It can describe a person who avoids paying their fair share or who gets things through trickery.
- The contractor was exposed as a chiseler who used cheap materials but charged for premium ones.
- Don't lend him money; he's a known chiseler who never pays anyone back.
- The market vendor was a clever chiseler, always finding ways to shortchange customers.
The word carries a connotation of small-scale, persistent, and cunning dishonesty rather than large-scale, violent crime. A "chiseler" is often seen as untrustworthy and operating at the edges of legality, chipping away ("chiseling") at others' resources or trust through deception.
- Chisel (verb): To cheat or swindle someone.
- He tried to chisel me out of fifty dollars.
- Chiseling (noun/gerund): The act of swindling or cheating.
- Swindler
- Cheat
- Con artist
- Scammer
- Defrauder
- Sharp operator
- To chisel someone out of something: A common phrasal construction meaning to swindle or cheat someone to obtain something from them.
- He chiseled the elderly couple out of their life savings.
- a person who swindles you by means of deception or fraud