Meanings
nounMacau scam (plural Macau scams)
plural Macau scams
- MalaysiaA scam where criminals impersonate a legal authority, a lottery, a kidnapper demanding a ransom, or a bank authority, to trick people into paying them money.
Synonyms: 419 fraud
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA scam where criminals impersonate a legal authority, a lottery, a kidnapper demanding a ransom, or a bank authority, to trick people into paying them money.
Similar
Also see
Origin
From Macau, where such scams were first reported. Compare Tagalog lutong-makaw.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
Macau scam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Macau%20scam
MLA
“Macau scam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Macau%20scam. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Macau scam,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Macau%20scam.
Source: Macau scam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.