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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

charlatan

/ˈʃɑɹlətən/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:47
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What does charlatan mean?

noun

  1. A malicious trickster; a fake person, especially one who deceives for personal profit.
More meanings (1)

noun

  1. (obsolete) A mountebank, someone who addresses crowds in the street; (especially), an itinerant seller of medicines or drugs.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/ˈʃɑɹlətən/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

Like the charlatan who counterfeits a spiritual force he has sometimes felt, they lose the power they have abused.
W. Somerset (William Somerset) MaughamThe Moon and SixpenceProject Gutenberg ebook #222
The commission-merchant--that is, the merchant--that is, the man--is a gambler, a slanderer, a charlatan, a mercenary, a thief, a forger.
P.-J. (Pierre-Joseph) ProudhonSystem of Economical Contradictions; Or, The Philosophy of MiseryProject Gutenberg ebook #444
More book examples (3)
He had the volubility of an Italian charlatan at a fair, and, like him, appeared to be proclaiming the merits of some quack remedy.
James Russell LowellMy Garden AcquaintanceProject Gutenberg ebook #880
The faker, the charlatan is everywhere--using the mental and moral and artistic forces of life as a means of delivering himself from economic servitude.
Upton SinclairThe Profits of Religion: An Essay in Economic InterpretationProject Gutenberg ebook #1558
Of course, their cry of "charlatan," "humbug," and "swindler" was louder than ever from that time, but Barnum never objected to being celled names.
Joel BentonA Unique Story of a Marvellous Career: Life of Hon. Phineas T. BarnumProject Gutenberg ebook #1576