buttinsky

noun

bə-ˈdin-skē How to pronounce buttinsky (audio)
variants also buttinski
Definition of buttinskynext
as in intruder
a person who meddles in the affairs of others there's always some buttinsky who has to tell you there's a better way to do whatever you're doing

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of buttinsky Rather, the story is set in motion by Kevin O’Neill (Rick Holmes), a private-equity manager and arrogant buttinsky who takes an interest in Cara. — Jesse Green, New York Times, 6 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for buttinsky
  1. intruder
  2. busybody
  3. interloper
  4. spy
  5. gossiper
  6. meddler
Noun
  • The curious intruder appeared particularly interested in the shop's inventory, tearing into a sweet-tea blend and investigating tea diffusers as a crowd gathered outside.
    — Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2026
  • In this case the intruder was an AI application running rogue inside a company’s own test, and the damage spread to a second company’s systems.
    — John Caruso, Hartford Courant, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of intruder
Noun
  • On 227, Williams starred as Lester Jenkins, who has his own construction company in support of his busybody wife, Mary (Gibbs), and their studious daughter, Brenda (Regina King).
    — Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 16 July 2026
  • Since her ballerina kindergarten years, Sukihana—the rapper, reality television star, podcaster, and soon-to-be mom of four—has been a polymathic busybody.
    — Meagan Jordan, VIBE.com, 10 July 2026
Definition of busybody
Noun
  • Much of the party establishment saw him as an interloper at its tall gates.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 15 Aug. 2026
  • If he was viewed as an art-world interloper, Roth has enough influence and goodwill that no one was really going to say that out loud.
    — Marisa Meltzer, Vanity Fair, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of interloper
Noun
  • Reports have continued to swirl around who might next don the tuxedo of Ian Fleming’s beloved spy.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 24 Aug. 2026
  • So in classic spy fashion, the group devised secret codes to communicate with one another, hidden in plain sight, so the KGB would be none the wiser — using series of notes embedded in their sheet music.
    — Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of spy
Noun
  • Celebrity gossiper Rob Shuter reported that the two recently let go of a number of their staff.
    — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 3 Sep. 2025
  • Her staff figured out how to get rid of the gossiper.
    — Ronda Racha Penrice, HollywoodReporter, 10 Aug. 2025
Definition of gossiper
Noun
  • Nelly herself is heavily reinterpreted by Fennell, imagined in this film as the illegitimate daughter of an aristocrat who serves as Cathy’s maid; the film also runs with modern readings of her character as a more proactive meddler in the doomed love between the main characters.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 13 Feb. 2026
  • The factory owners called her a meddler and insisted that the cost of protecting workers would destroy American industry.
    — Michelle A. Williams, STAT, 2 Feb. 2026
Definition of meddler

Browse Nearby Words

buttinskies
buttinsky
buttocks
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Cite this Entry

“Buttinsky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/buttinsky. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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