What does defrauded mean?
"Defrauded" is the past tense and past participle of the verb "defraud," meaning cheated out of money, property, or a legal entitlement by means of deception. Unlike simple theft, which involves direct taking, defrauding relies on trickery — false representations, forged documents, misleading promises, or abuse of trust — so a person who has been defrauded has been wronged through deceit rather than force. The word carries formal connotations and appears most often in legal proceedings, regulatory reports, and journalism: courts may find that investors were "defrauded," or consumers describe being "defrauded by" a company. It typically pairs with the preposition "of" to specify what was taken, as in "defrauded of his savings." Derived ultimately from the Latin noun "fraus," meaning deceit or injury, the term shares its origin with "fraud" and "fraudulent." Because it names both an act and a victim's experience, it remains one of the most precise English words for wrongdoing that exploits trust.
Past tense and past participle of 'defraud': cheated out of money, property, or a right by deception.
"He was defrauded of nearly £40,000 by a man he had considered a close friend."
Standardly followed by 'of' + the thing taken, or by the agent with 'by'.
Describing a person or group who has suffered such cheating, especially in legal contexts.
"The settlement fund was established to compensate defrauded policyholders."
The word traces straight back to the Latin 'fraus' — the same root that gave us 'fraud' — meaning deceit itself was baked into the crime from the very start.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of defrauded
"Defrauded" derives from the verb "defraud," which entered English in the early modern period from the Latin "defraudare," formed from "de-" (expressing removal) plus "fraudare," meaning to cheat. "Fraudare" in turn comes from "fraus," the Latin noun for deceit, injury, or wrongdoing. This same root produced "fraud" and "fraudulent" in English, making them true siblings of "defrauded" in both form and meaning.
Related word forms
How defrauded is actually used
Formal to neutral register, common in legal, journalistic, and consumer-protection contexts. It almost always takes the preposition 'of' when stating what was taken: 'defrauded of her inheritance.' The word implies deliberate deception rather than mere loss or bad luck, giving it a stronger connotation of wrongdoing than words like 'disappointed' or even 'cheated' in casual use.
Easily confused with defrauded
'Defrocked' means removed from the clergy or a profession as punishment, while 'defrauded' means cheated out of money or property.