ETYM French fraude, Latin fraus, fraudis; prob. akin to Skr. dhűrv to injure, dhvor to cause to fall, and Eng. dull.
1. Deliberate trickery intended to gain an advantage; SYN. fraudulence, dupery, hoax, put-on.
2. Intentional deception resulting in injury to another person.
In law, an act of deception resulting in injury to another. To establish fraud it has to be demonstrated that (1) a false representation (for example, a factually untrue statement) has been made, with the intention that it should be acted upon; (2) the person making the representation knows it is false or does not attempt to find out whether it is true or not; and (3) the person to whom the representation is made acts upon it to his or her detriment.
A contract based on fraud can be declared void, and the injured party can sue for damages.