Translation guide
To avoid paying money owed, especially by cheating or running away. Often used for skipping out on a bill, fare, or debt.
To leave without paying for a meal or drinks.
Literally 'eating and drinking without money'. This is the standard term for dine-and-dash.
He bilked the restaurant and ran away.
Colloquial term for eating and running. More casual than 無銭飲食.
That customer bilked us.
Specifically for drinking and running, e.g., at a bar.
Some people get drunk and bilk the bar.
To avoid paying for transportation.
Formal term for fare evasion. Literally 'riding without fare'.
Fare evasion is a crime.
Refers to the trick of using two tickets to cover only the start and end of a journey, skipping the middle. From the smoking pipe 'kiseru'.
Literally 'to trample on the fare', meaning to stiff someone on a fare.
He tried to bilk the taxi fare.
To obtain money by deception or swindle.
To take money by deceiving. Common for fraud.
He bilked elderly people out of money with an investment scheme.
Formal term for swindling or defrauding.
The company bilked customers out of money.
Colloquial for extorting or squeezing money out of someone.
To evade a financial responsibility.
There is no single Japanese word that covers all uses of 'bilk'. Choose the expression based on the specific situation: skipping a bill, evading a fare, or committing fraud.
He got caught bilking the train and paid a fine.
I was bilked by a shady business.
He's looking for ways to bilk his taxes.