cheat: Meaning and Definition of

cheat

Pronunciation: (chēt), [key]
— v.t.
  1. to defraud; swindle: He cheated her out of her inheritance.
  2. to deceive; influence by fraud: He cheated us into believing him a hero.
  3. to elude; deprive of something expected: He cheated the law by suicide.
—v.i.
  1. to practice fraud or deceit: She cheats without regrets.
  2. to violate rules or regulations: He cheats at cards.
  3. to take an examination or test in a dishonest way, as by improper access to answers.
  4. to be sexually unfaithful (often fol. by on): Her husband knew she had been cheating all along. He cheated on his wife.
—n.
  1. a person who acts dishonestly, deceives, or defrauds: He is a cheat and a liar.
  2. a fraud; swindle; deception: The game was a cheat.
  3. the fraudulent obtaining of another's property by a pretense or trick.
  4. an impostor: The man who passed as an earl was a cheat.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
See also: