1
as in advantage
the more favorable condition or position in a competition
your fluency in French should put you in the catbird seat for getting the Paris posting
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in center stage
the center of public attention
in the wake of the natural disaster, this obscure bureaucrat was suddenly and unexpectedly thrust into the catbird seat
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of catbird seat
The upstart state assemblymember is at the forefront of a coalition of progressives seeking to block former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo from taking the proverbial catbird seat in Gracie Mansion.
—
James Powel, USA Today, 24 June 2025
Mom, who’d just flown from Washington state to the Big Apple, fist-pumped her way to a catbird seat on Cloud 9.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 3 Apr. 2025
With memory giants like Samsung and SK Hynix cranking up production to keep pace with Nvidia’s Blackwell ramp, Lam is sitting in the catbird seat.
—John Buckingham, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
The catbird seats were occupied instead by the titans of attention.
—Ezra Klein, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for catbird seat
James Powel, USA Today, 24 June 2025
Mom, who’d just flown from Washington state to the Big Apple, fist-pumped her way to a catbird seat on Cloud 9.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 3 Apr. 2025
With memory giants like Samsung and SK Hynix cranking up production to keep pace with Nvidia’s Blackwell ramp, Lam is sitting in the catbird seat.
—John Buckingham, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
The catbird seats were occupied instead by the titans of attention.
—Ezra Klein, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for catbird seat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catbird seat
Noun
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Real Madrid chief Florentino Perez was dead against the idea, with his club arguing that breaking the traditional home and away format adulterated the competition, while also expressing concern over participating teams gaining a financial advantage.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
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Legalized betting has certain security advantages in that unusual betting patterns — such as large bets being placed on a random player’s performance — can be immediately flagged.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Like those film noir classics, the episode begins in black and white, with Clarkson standing center stage in front of her band to sing her latest Kellyoke pick.—
Dave Quinn,
PEOPLE,
31 Oct. 2025
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Fergie appeared to the crowd via a riser housed on a platform where the band played center stage.—
Shaheem Reid,
VIBE.com,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Edis, chief of the Landon family office and a protégé of its founder, the late swashbuckling billionaire Timothy Landon, who’s legendary as the chief political advisor to his military school chum, the sultan of Oman, notes that Swain gives Houlihan Lokey an extra edge.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
1 Nov. 2025
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This is the original pool, an infinity-edge spot where, years ago, Bobby would spend hours splashing and then join us at Lotus for lunch.—
Jacqui Gifford,
Travel + Leisure,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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With the Dolphins having a mini bye week courtesy of playing on Thursday, McDaniel’s status — along with perhaps Dolphins general manager Chris Grier — will be under a spotlight.—
The Athletic NFL Staff,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
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The vibe at Terrace, which has both indoor and outdoor seating and spotlights Italian fare, feels a touch more formal.—
Jacqui Gifford,
Travel + Leisure,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Both processors were competitive, and neither gained a drastic upper hand, save for some specific tasks.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
25 Oct. 2025
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On the other hand, Cramer said China's upper hand on the U.S. on rare earth minerals, which are important components in fighter jets, electric vehicle motors, and more, is another important layer to the trade tensions.—
Kevin Stankiewicz,
CNBC,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Sacramento’s own Deftones headlined on Friday night, and Korn had top billing on Saturday.—
Nathaniel Levine,
Sacbee.com,
6 Oct. 2025
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This surprisingly early Coachella talent announcement includes its regular roster of pop superstar headliners, with Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G taking top billing among dozens of other genre spanning acts.—
Katie Bain,
Billboard,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Microsoft’s whip hand, more than anything, else, comes down to cold hard cash.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
19 Nov. 2023
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The failure of the ‘red wave’ to materialize means that an old-fashioned socialist will have the whip hand over health care for the next two years.—
Joel Zinberg,
National Review,
30 Nov. 2022
Noun
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The film is beginning its theatrical rollout as al-Sisi enjoys a moment in the international limelight, after President Donald Trump praised the Egyptian president for his role in helping to get the Gaza peace plan overline.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
17 Oct. 2025
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My poetry began as a father’s sly growl, became a spectacle on a rickety stage washed in limelight, and now is a 70-year-old woman’s walk back into a thousand yesterdays.—
Via Scribner,
Literary Hub,
6 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Catbird seat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catbird%20seat. Accessed 1 Nov. 2025.
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