cheater (n.)

the reverting of land to a king or lord in certain cases, early 14c., from Anglo-French eschete (late 13c.), Old French eschete "succession, inheritance," literally "that which falls to one," noun use of fem. past participle of escheoir "happen, befall, occur, take place; fall due; lapse (legally)," from Late Latin *excadere "to fall out," from Latin ex "out, away" (see ex-) + cadere "to fall" (from PIE root *kad- "to fall"). As a verb, from late 14c. Related: Escheated; escheating. Late Latin *excadere represents a restored form of excidere, which yielded excise.

mid-15c., "to escheat, to seize as an escheat," a shortening of Old French escheat, legal term for revision of property to the state when the owner dies without heirs, literally "that which falls to one," past participle of escheoir "happen, befall, occur, take place; fall due; lapse (legally)," from Late Latin *excadere "fall away, fall out," from Latin ex- "out" (see ex-) + cadere "to fall" (from PIE root *kad- "to fall").

Also compare escheat. The royal officers who had charge of escheats evidently had a reputation for unscrupulousness, and the meaning of the verb evolved through "confiscate" (mid-15c.) to "deprive unfairly" (1580s), to "deceive, impose upon, trick" (1630s). The intransitive sense of "act dishonestly, practice fraud or trickery" is from 1630s. To cheat on (someone) "be sexually unfaithful" is attested by 1934. Related: Cheated; cheating.