1
as in ruse
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
asking me to take her shopping turned out to be a ploy to get me to the surprise party
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2
as in spree
a time or instance of carefree fun
wanted one grand ploy through Europe before settling down and raising a family
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ploy
Restrain your anger and disappointment over FIFA’s corporate greed and unabashed ploy to capitalize on this every-four-year money grab.
—
Cam Inman, Mercury News, 8 June 2026
Peterborough United midfielder Matthew Garbett is crucial to this ploy, often drifting into wider positions or making selfless underlapping runs to help his side’s attack.
—Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Heastie and his Democratic pals tried this in 2022 and the state courts rejected the ploy.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 4 June 2026
There had been political whispers in South Windsor since the November election about whether the decision disqualifying Amadasun was part of a Republican ploy to keep Democrats from achieving a council supermajority.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ploy
Cam Inman, Mercury News, 8 June 2026
Peterborough United midfielder Matthew Garbett is crucial to this ploy, often drifting into wider positions or making selfless underlapping runs to help his side’s attack.
—Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Heastie and his Democratic pals tried this in 2022 and the state courts rejected the ploy.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 4 June 2026
There had been political whispers in South Windsor since the November election about whether the decision disqualifying Amadasun was part of a Republican ploy to keep Democrats from achieving a council supermajority.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ploy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ploy
Noun
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Olive’s fake-dating ruse stems from wanting to let her best friend Anh (Marsh) date her crush Jeremy (Duvernay).—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
11 June 2026
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Adolf Hitler wasn’t completely fooled, and about four million mines were planted on the beaches, but the ruse worked well enough that, even as the landings got underway, some German commanders doubted Normandy was the main attack.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
3 June 2026
Noun
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On top of doggedly tracking a serial killer whose murder spree started decades earlier, our shrewd heroine uncovers a tangled workplace conspiracy that's as sinister as her prime suspect's motives.—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 June 2026
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Kenya is in the middle of a $45 billion investment spree on airports, ports, rail, and industrial zones, creating multiyear financing needs and transaction advisory fee opportunities.—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
15 June 2026
Noun
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Industrial incompatibilities ultimately sank the project at the heart of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) scheme, the much-vaunted political lynchpin of Franco-German military cooperation.—
Joseph Ataman,
CNN Money,
13 June 2026
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Suhail Kwatra was indicted by the Suffolk DA’s office on a felony charge for larceny over $1,200 by single scheme, according to court records out of Suffolk Superior Court.—
Rick Sobey,
Boston Herald,
12 June 2026
Noun
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Folarin Balogun is now the second US player to score more than once in a World Cup match, after Bert Patenaude – who happened to score the World Cup’s first-ever hat-trick in the inaugural 1930 edition … against Paraguay, so less.—
Jacob Lev,
CNN Money,
13 June 2026
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These chic wide-leg trousers will do just the trick, made of an ultra-soft and airy fabric ideal for looking polished and cool on warm-weather travels.—
Julia Morlino,
Travel + Leisure,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ploy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ploy. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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