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boiler room

noun

Definition of boiler room

1 : a room in which a boiler is located
2 : a room equipped with telephones used for making high-pressure usually fraudulent sales pitches

Examples of boiler room in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

 And, stripped of the hype around self-driving cars and efficient algorithms, Uber looks less like a thoroughbred tech unicorn and more like a Wall Street boiler room Ponzi scheme. — Wired, "WIRED Book of the Month: Super Pumped by Mike Isaac," 3 Sep. 2019 In 2008, Harris commissioned an asbestos survey of the boiler rooms, which revealed nearly 224,000 square feet of materials containing asbestos, according to court documents. — Kevin Grasha, Cincinnati.com, "Asbestos cleanup at former Lawrence County power plant to cost millions," 3 Sep. 2019 The cause of the initial explosion in the basement boiler room at the dorm remains under investigation. — Washington Post, "Nevada students to live in hotel-casino after dorm blast," 2 Aug. 2019 Ishpeming Some of the best beer in the Upper Peninsula is brewed and sold in the former boiler room of the historic Mather Inn. — Brian Manzullo, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan's Upper Peninsula: The top 7 breweries you must visit," 24 July 2019 Our compounds boiler room was manned by a Turkish National. — Laura Demarco, cleveland.com, "Apollo 11 Moon Landing: Readers shares their memories of the momentous event for mankind," 14 July 2019 Most of these calls come from telephone boiler rooms in India, Baker told NBC News BETTER. — NBC News, "Get a call from the Social Security Administration? It's the latest government imposter scam," 13 July 2019 Emergency services arrived at the hotel at 10:19 am after being alerted to the presence of carbon monoxide in the building’s boiler room by an automatic alarm. — Hannah Chubb, PEOPLE.com, "Carbon Monoxide Leak in Super 8 Motel Sends 46 People to the Hospital," 10 July 2019 Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Chief John Lane told reporters that the alarm in question was in the hotel's boiler room. — Fox News, "Dozens hospitalized after carbon monoxide exposure at Winnipeg motel," 10 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'boiler room.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of boiler room

1820, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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More Definitions for boiler room

boiler room

noun

Financial Definition of boiler room

What It Is

A boiler room is a call center in which salespeople call potential investors in an attempt to sell risky, or even falsified, investment opportunities using aggressive and unethical tactics.

How It Works

The term came about as a result of the high pressure sales environment it creates. Most salespeople in these environments work solely on commission and many of the investment opportunities are less-than-legitimate.

The salesperson may use fake reports or documents to support claims of profits or legitimacy. During the sales call, aggressive tactics are used to intimidate and entice naïve and non-investment-savvy consumers to partake in an investment scam that may have little, if any, true value. The salespeople try to entice potential investors by promising or hinting at huge returns on their investment.

Why It Matters

If not illegal, the sales tactics that are used in boiler rooms do not conform to government regulations or fair market rules. Boiler room salespeople maximize their income by conveying one-sided, or even false, information in order to persuade as many customers as possible to invest as quickly as possible.

Source: Investing Answers

boiler room

noun

English Language Learners Definition of boiler room

: a room with equipment for heating a building or ship : a room in which a boiler is located
US : a room with many telephones that are used by people who call strangers and use dishonest or forceful methods to try to sell them something

See the full definition for boiler room in the English Language Learners Dictionary

boiler room

noun
boil·​er room

Legal Definition of boiler room

: a room equipped with telephones used for making high-pressure usually fraudulent sales pitches

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