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.
彼はレストランで無銭飲食をして逃げた。
He bilked the restaurant and ran away.
Colloquial term for eating and running. More casual than 無銭飲食.
あの客、食い逃げしたよ。
That customer bilked us.
Specifically for drinking and running, e.g., at a bar.
酔っ払って飲み逃げする人がいる。
Some people get drunk and bilk the bar.
To avoid paying for transportation.
Formal term for fare evasion. Literally 'riding without fare'.
無賃乗車は犯罪です。
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'.
キセル乗車がバレて罰金を払った。
He got caught bilking the train and paid a fine.
Literally 'to trample on the fare', meaning to stiff someone on a fare.
タクシーの運賃を踏み倒そうとした。
He tried to bilk the taxi fare.
To obtain money by deception or swindle.
To take money by deceiving. Common for fraud.
彼は投資話で高齢者から金を騙し取った。
He bilked elderly people out of money with an investment scheme.
Formal term for swindling or defrauding.
会社が顧客から金を詐取した。
The company bilked customers out of money.
Colloquial for extorting or squeezing money out of someone.
悪質な業者に金を巻き上げられた。
I was bilked by a shady business.
To evade a financial responsibility.
To default on a debt, often deliberately.
彼は借金を踏み倒して夜逃げした。
He bilked his debts and fled under cover of night.
General phrase for evading payment.
税金の支払いを逃れる方法を探している。
He's looking for ways to bilk his taxes.
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.