1. people who engage in petty swindling or confidence games
Usage: informal

Examples

• The grifters targeted elderly tourists with fake charity scams.
• Police warned residents about grifters operating in the downtown area.
• The movie featured a pair of clever grifters who specialized in card tricks.
• Local businesses were advised to watch out for grifters selling counterfeit goods.
• The grifters moved from town to town to avoid getting caught.
• She wrote a novel about small-time grifters in 1930s Chicago.