boodler

9.9

A person who takes money unfairly by accepting bribes

noun
/ˈbuːdlər/

Offensive

: corrupto

The city council was accused of accepting bribes from local boodlers to secure their contracts.

Examples

He was growing disenchanted with Chicago, a political sewer increasingly controlled by a band of boodlers, the aldermen, who openly sold favors.

Fiction book (1993)
The governor and the Chicago boodlers were making noises about supporting the free silver radicals.

Fiction book (1993)
Joe's own First Ward was headquarters for the worst boodlers?

Fiction book (1993)
Everyone knew that the boodlers were manipulating the election results for their own gain.
The investigation uncovered a network of boodlers who had been siphoning public funds for years.

Synonyms

crook

vsboodler

Offensive

153 3.9

A dishonest person who cheats or steals

is a general criminal rather than someone focused on political bribery and payoff taking

cheater

vsboodler

Offensive

112 2.6

A person who breaks the rules or lies to get an advantage

gains money via political corruption and bribery rather than by simple rule breaking

scoundrel

vsboodler

Offensive

51 6.5

A person who behaves dishonestly and hurts others by lying or stealing

is broader moral wrongdoing rather than specifically taking bribes or political corruption

con artist

vsboodler

40 4.8

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

wins trust to trick and steal rather than take payments from political deals

bankster

vsboodler

Offensive

23 9.9

A banker who is corrupt and greedy

is focused on political bribery and corruption rather than banking greed

scammer

vsboodler

NSFW

20 4.0

A person who tricks others to take their money or things

uses scams rather than seeking money specifically via political corruption

grifter

vsboodler

Slang

16 9.1

A person who tricks others to get their money or things

works by personal fraud and con games rather than by political payoffs

swindler

vsboodler

15 5.4

A person who tricks people to take their money

obtains money specifically through bribery or political corruption rather than scams

shyster

vsboodler

Offensive

14 9.9

A person, often a lawyer or politician, who acts dishonestly to get what they want

is about professionals behaving unethically rather than only taking bribes

bagman

vsboodler

NSFW

10 9.9

A person who collects or delivers illegal money for a criminal group

receives illicit money personally rather than acting only as a collector

launderer

vsboodler

NSFW

6 7.8

A person who makes illegal money look like it came from legal work

handles dirty money to clean it rather than directly taking payoffs

embezzler

vsboodler

5 7.4

A person who takes money they were trusted with, often from their employer

steals funds one was trusted with rather than gaining money via bribery

political hack

vsboodler

Offensive

3 8.6

A politician who works for their party or friends to benefit themselves

is a politician motivated by loyalty and advantage rather than explicit bribery

defrauder

vsboodler

Formal

1 7.9

A person who gets money by lying to or tricking people

gets money through bribery and political corruption rather than by general deception

rooker

vsboodler

Offensive

1 9.9

A person who cheats others to get money or things

denotes gaining money by political bribery rather than being an archaic cheat term

gouger

vsboodler

Offensive

1 9.9

A person who cheats people to get money

takes advantage through fraud or price abuse rather than earning money via political bribery

highbinder

vsboodler

Offensive

1 9.9

A politician who uses power for illegal or dishonest acts

is broader any dishonest money taker not limited to politicians

wangler

vsboodler

1 9.9

A person who tricks others using clever, dishonest methods to get what they want

relies on manipulation and clever methods rather than direct bribery for gain

greedy bankster

vsboodler

Offensive

9.9

A dishonest banker or financial worker who takes money from people unfairly

is someone who gets corrupt money in political contexts rather than just finance

defalcator

vsboodler

Formal

9.9

A person who steals money they were trusted to look after

takes money by political corruption or bribery rather than misappropriating trust funds

flimflammer

vsboodler

Archaic

9.9

A person who cheats others with tricks or fake deals

uses small tricks and scams rather than taking political bribes

cozener

vsboodler

Archaic

9.9

A person who tricks people to get their money or things

focuses on trickery and fraud rather than obtaining money via political corruption

finagler

vsboodler

Offensive

9.8

A person who gets things by tricking or lying to others

uses clever trickery to get benefits rather than taking political payoffs

magsman

vsboodler

Archaic

9.9

A person who tricks others using clever talk to take their money

focuses on getting money by bribery and political corruption rather than old tricks

diddler

vsboodler

Offensive

8.6

A person who cheats others to get small amounts of money

uses petty cheating rather than serious political corruption for money

Antonyms

whistleblower

324 6.2

A person who tells authorities about secret illegal acts in an organization to stop harm

How Corrupt

boodler

Offensive

9.9

briber

1 7.3

Surface Forms

boodler singular

boodlers plural

Morphology

boodler = boodle (semi-transparent) = boodle + er

The word is formed regularly with the agentive suffix '-er' from 'boodle', but the base is a slangy and relatively specialized word.

Etymology

Boodler comes from boodle, an old slang word for 'money' or a 'bribe', and that word came from the Dutch boedel meaning 'property'. So a boodler is someone who takes that kind of money dishonestly, often in politics.