Financial Fraud Terms

noun an artist who specializes in bunco-related activities

• The authorities were able to apprehend the bunco artist before he could scam any more innocent victims.
• I heard that Joe's cousin is a real bunco artist, always trying to pull a fast one on people.
• Watch out for that bunco artist, he's been known to con people out of their money.
• In the world of politics, some may consider a skilled lobbyist to be a bunco artist, manipulating situations for personal gain.

verb to render something invalid or null

adjective having been declared invalid or null

• The contract was invalidated due to a technicality in the wording.
• They said my excuse was invalid, so I couldn't get out of going to the party.
• The referee totally invalidated that call, it was so unfair.
• Her harsh words invalidated all of his efforts to make amends.

noun a person who controls or influences others in a clever or unscrupulous way

• The manipulator used cunning tactics to deceive others for personal gain.
• Don't trust that manipulator, he's always up to something sneaky.
• Watch out for that manipulator, he's a real snake in the grass.
• She was a master manipulator, pulling strings behind the scenes to control the outcome.

noun a gambling game in which a small object is placed under one of three shells or cups, which are then moved around quickly and the player must guess which one it is under

• The con artist was caught running a shell game on the streets of the city.
• I heard there's a guy doing a shell game down at the boardwalk.
• Don't fall for that shell game, it's a total scam.
• The political debate felt like a shell game, with each candidate trying to deceive the audience.

adjective having or showing no moral principles; not honest or fair

• The unscrupulous businessman took advantage of vulnerable customers.
• I heard about an unscrupulous guy who scams people online.
• Don't trust that unscrupulous dude, he's shady.
• The unscrupulous behavior of the politician left a stain on his reputation.

noun A word used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things. In this phrase, 'hands' is a noun referring to the body part where something could be held or caught.

verb A word used to describe an action or state of being. In this case, 'fall' is a verb indicating the action of something dropping or being misplaced.

adjective A word that describes or modifies a noun. 'Wrong' is an adjective describing the type of hands that something could fall into.

preposition A word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence. 'Into' is a preposition indicating movement towards the inside of something.

article A word that is used to specify a noun as specific or unspecific. 'The' is an article indicating a specific noun, in this case, 'hands'.

• It is crucial to ensure that sensitive information does not fall into the wrong hands.
• Make sure you don't let that document fall into the wrong hands.
• Don't let that gossip fall into the wrong hands!
• The key to the safe must not fall into the wrong hands.

noun a word that represents a person, place, thing, or idea

verb a word that expresses an action or state of being

adverb a word that modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb

preposition a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence

article a word that is used to specify a noun

• The company's new product release seemed to fly beneath the radar of industry analysts.
• I always try to fly under the radar at family gatherings to avoid drama.
• The students managed to fly beneath the radar and skip class without getting caught.
• Her talent for negotiation allowed her to fly under the radar and secure a better deal.

noun the act of riding on someone's back or shoulders

verb to carry or transport someone on one's back or shoulders

• The company strictly prohibits piggybacking on the network without proper authorization.
• Hey, do you mind piggybacking on my WiFi for a bit?
• I saw him piggybacking on his friend's success to get ahead in the industry.
• His argument was just piggybacking off of what the previous speaker had said.