scam
pronunciation
How to pronounce scam in British English:
UK [skæm]
How to pronounce scam in American English:
US [skæm]
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- Noun:
- a fraudulent business scheme
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- Verb:
- deprive of by deceit
Word Origin
- scam
- 1963, noun and verb, U.S. slang, a carnival term, of unknown origin. Perhaps related to 19c. British slang scamp "cheater, swindler" (see scamp (n.)).
Example
- 1. This is no futures scam , it 's a bureaucratic anomaly .
- 2. Does this sound like a huge subprime cdo scam ?
- 3. How to spot a scam : 7 questions to ask before buying
- 4. But this promise was , as time magazine bluntly put it , a " scam . "
- 5. But if each peasant has to scan her irises every time she picks up her ration , it will be harder to scam the system .