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racketeer

racketeer

5 9.3
A person who forces or tricks others to give money
  • noun
  • /ˌrækɪˈtɪr/
  • NSFW
translation icon : extorsionista
  • The chase is on with Susan and Walker pursued by the black-market racketeers who, in turn, are trailed by the police.
  • a notorious racketeer
  • labor racketeers

You're either a racketeer or you're a gangster.

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Examples

  • Loria the racketeer has removed 13 of his 14 highest-paid players since July.

    Blog text (29)
  • Ed Jones was a racketeer.

  • A character, a racketeer, but his word was good.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • I told you not to marry that racketeer!

  • The mystery big shop racketeer is in for a big surprise.

  • So they use me for that, but they also use me as a racketeer in business to control unions, jobs, making money, making deals.

  • He's a petty racketeer who uses pachinko as a front, like many other criminals.

  • Lemoyne has long been considered a major racketeer in the Crescent City underworld scene.

  • I'm talking about a billion dollars in low or no-interest loans this man has given to known racketeers for their illegal enterprises.

  • The police arrested several men who were suspected to be racketeers involved in extortion.

Synonyms

gangster
vsracketeer
249 4.4

A person who is part of a group that does illegal things

may overlap with that group but specifically refers to earning by fraud or threats
crook
vsracketeer
  • Offensive
153 3.9

A dishonest person who cheats or steals

is more specific about earning money by fraud, extortion, or schemes
mobster
vsracketeer
58 5.8

A person who is part of a gang that does illegal things and often uses violence

is not limited to gang membership and focuses on taking money illegally
con man
vsracketeer
47 4.7

A person who tricks people by gaining their trust to get their money

shares that deceit but may also rely on force or organized schemes
con artist
vsracketeer
40 4.8

A person who tricks people by gaining their trust to take their money or valuables

does the same stealing but can also use threats or broader criminal networks
scammer
vsracketeer
  • NSFW
20 4.0

A person who tricks others to take their money or things

covers such fraud but also includes more direct criminal activities like extortion
blackmailer
vsracketeer
  • NSFW
18 6.3

A person who threatens to reveal private things to get money

includes that tactic but also uses other criminal ways to get money
grifter
vsracketeer
  • Slang
16 9.1

A person who tricks others to get their money or things

can cover those tricks but also includes larger or violent criminal methods
swindler
vsracketeer
15 5.4

A person who tricks people to take their money

also takes money unlawfully but can rely on threats or organized crime
extortionist
vsracketeer
10 8.6

A person who gets money by threatening to tell secrets

uses threats sometimes but also other illegal methods like fraud
mafioso
vsracketeer
5 8.7

A person who belongs to a secret criminal group that uses violence

shares organized crime links but focuses specifically on getting money illegally
defrauder
vsracketeer
  • Formal
1 7.9

A person who gets money by lying to or tricking people

may commit fraud like this but also uses extortion or violent means
rooker
vsracketeer
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who cheats others to get money or things

means the same cheating idea but applies to many criminal money-making methods
extortioner
vsracketeer
1 9.0

A person who makes someone give money or other things using threats

covers that coercion but also includes broader fraud and illegal schemes
extorter
vsracketeer
8.9

A person who uses threats or force to get money from others

can use intimidation but also gains money by fraud or other crimes
boodler
vsracketeer
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who takes money unfairly by accepting bribes

includes corrupt gains but also covers direct fraud or coercive collection

Compounds

United States law from 1970 used to fight organized crime by giving stronger punishments

How Criminal

capo
9 9.7
gangster
249 4.4
racketeer
  • NSFW
5 9.3
con artist
40 4.8

Surface Forms

racketeer singular
racketeers plural

Morphology

racketeer = racket (transparent) = racket + eer

Meaning is directly built from 'racket' (criminal scheme) + the productive agentive suffix '-eer', yielding 'person who conducts a racket'.

Etymology

Racketeer comes from the American slang racket, which means 'a dishonest scheme' to get money, plus the agent ending -eer, as in engineer or pioneer. So a racketeer is someone who runs a 'racket' and gets money by threats, cheating, or other illegal means.