charlatan

charlatan
noun
char·;la·;tan ;sh;r-l;-t;n
Synonyms of charlatan
1
: quack entry 4 sense 2
charlatans harming their patients with dubious procedures
2
: one making usually showy pretenses to knowledge or ability : fraud, faker
a charlatan willing to do and say virtually anything to remain in the spotlight
—Alan Brinkley
charlatanism
;sh;r-l;-t;-;ni-z;m
 noun
charlatanry
;sh;r-l;-t;n-r;
 noun


Did you know?
In medieval Italy, people roamed throughout the land selling fake remedies and making false claims about their healing abilities. Many of these pretenders reputedly came from a village called Cerreto, and as a result, cerretano (meaning “inhabitant of Cerreto”) became an epithet for a quack physician. In addition, these frauds used a practiced patter to attract customers, like the chatter of a circus barker. The Italian word for “to chatter” is ciarlare, and chattering was so associated with the cerretano that the spelling of the word shifted to ciarlatano. By the early 17th century, English speakers had anglicized the Italian word to charlatan and adopted it as their own.

Synonyms
fraud
sham
fake
pretender
imposter
deceiver
quack
mountebank
misleader
faker
impostor
Examples of charlatan in a Sentence
the famed faith healer turned out to be a charlatan
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More
Famously, the Wizard is a charlatan in every version of the text.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2025
No matter the party affiliation, there’ll be charlatans claiming to care, while smooth-talking their way into the homes of hard-working people who struggle.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 July 2025
Caricatured by Honor; Daumier and his lesser followers always as a mountebank, a charlatan, a circus clown, Louis Napoleon could normalize the extent of his outrages by the seeming harmlessness of his absurdities.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
Pauly plays the impulsive charlatan with an irrepressible charm.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 25 May 2025
Word History
Etymology
Italian ciarlatano, alteration of cerretano, literally, inhabitant of Cerreto, from Cerreto, Italy

First Known Use
1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of charlatan was in 1618
See more words from the same year
Browse Nearby Words
charlady
charlatan
charlatanic