taker-in
Definition
- Noun:
- A person who deceives or cheats others; a swindler or con artist.
- Literally, one who takes something in, such as an item or a person, but in historical or informal usage, it primarily refers to someone who tricks or defrauds.
Usage Examples
- (A swindler who deceived people for financial gain.)
- (A con artist pretending to collect donations for a fake cause.)
Advanced Usage
- "to be a taker-in of fools": an idiomatic expression meaning to exploit the gullible.
- He was known as a taker-in of fools, always finding new victims for his schemes. (He habitually deceived naive people.)
Variants and Related Words
- Take-in (n): an act of deception or fraud; also, a person who is easily deceived.
- The whole scheme was a take-in, designed to steal their savings. (A fraudulent operation.)
- Taker (n): one who takes; often used in compounds like "taker-in" but not synonymous alone.
- He is a risk taker, but not a taker-in. (He takes risks, not deceives others.)
Synonyms
- Swindler: a person who uses deception to obtain money or property.
- Cheat: someone who acts dishonestly to gain an advantage.
- Fraudster: a person who commits fraud.
- Con artist: a skilled deceiver who tricks people out of money.
Phrasal Verbs
- Take in: to deceive or trick someone.
- Don't be taken in by his smooth talk; he's a known taker-in. (Do not be deceived by his charming words.)
Related Idioms
- Take someone for a ride: to deceive or cheat someone.
- That salesman took me for a ride, but now I know he's a taker-in. (He cheated me in a transaction.)
- Pull a fast one: to trick someone quickly or cleverly.
- The taker-in pulled a fast one on the tourists, selling fake tickets. (He deceived them swiftly.)