manipulate

verb

ma·​nip·​u·​late mə-ˈni-pyə-ˌlāt How to pronounce manipulate (audio)
manipulated; manipulating

transitive verb

1
: to treat or operate with or as if with the hands or by mechanical means especially in a skillful manner
manipulate a pencil
manipulate a machine
2
a
: to manage or utilize skillfully
quantify our data and manipulate it statisticallyS. L. Payne
b
: to control or play upon by artful, unfair, or insidious means especially to one's own advantage
being used and manipulated by the knowing men around himNew Republic
3
: to change by artful or unfair means so as to serve one's purpose : doctor
suspected that the police reports were manipulatedEvelyn G. Cruickshanks
manipulatable adjective
manipulation noun
manipulator noun
manipulatory adjective

Examples of manipulate in a Sentence

The baby is learning to manipulate blocks. The mechanical arms are manipulated by a computer. The doctor manipulated my back. The program was designed to organize and manipulate large amounts of data. He's always been good at manipulating numbers in his head. As part of the experiment, students manipulated light and temperature to see how it affected the plants. She knows how to manipulate her parents to get what she wants. He felt that he had been manipulated by the people he trusted most. The editorial was a blatant attempt to manipulate public opinion. He's accused of trying to manipulate the price of the stock. See More
Recent Examples on the Web Vines of flowers twine over shoulders and across bodices with a naturalistic grace; pale peach ostrich feathers are manipulated into delicate wisps cinched with small grosgrain bows. Rachel Tashjian, Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2023 The 12-foot puppet is controlled by one person inside, and two others who manipulate the arms. Maeve Lawler, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Sep. 2023 It’s been a problem all season, regardless how the Rangers have tried to manipulate roles or personnel. Evan Grant, Dallas News, 7 Sep. 2023 Indiana probably won’t milk the clock too much against Indiana State on Friday, but expect to see the Hoosiers manipulating the new rule to their advantage against teams of similar or better skill this season. Zion Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Sep. 2023 Security researchers have demonstrated how indirect prompt injections could be used to steal data, manipulate someone’s résumé, and run code remotely on a machine. Matt Burgess, WIRED, 6 Sep. 2023 Her submissiveness to Tedros seems to indicate that she’s being manipulated. Maya Phillips, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2023 Martí Gutierrez moved the dish over to a larger microscope, equipped with pipettes manipulated by joysticks. Dana Goodyear, The New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2023 That’s a departure from the approach tech companies took after Russia manipulated social media to attempt to swing the 2016 election to Trump. Sarah Ellison, Washington Post, 25 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'manipulate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from manipulation, from French, from manipuler to handle an apparatus in chemistry, ultimately from Latin manipulus

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of manipulate was in 1834

Dictionary Entries Near manipulate

Cite this Entry

“Manipulate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/manipulate. Accessed 22 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

manipulate

verb
ma·​nip·​u·​late mə-ˈnip-yə-ˌlāt How to pronounce manipulate (audio)
manipulated; manipulating
1
: to treat or operate with or as if with the hands or by mechanical means especially with skill
manipulate the trackball
2
: to manage or use skillfully
manipulate masses of statistics
3
: to manage especially with intent to deceive
manipulate accounts
manipulate public opinion
manipulation noun
manipulator noun

Medical Definition

manipulate

transitive verb
ma·​nip·​u·​late mə-ˈnip-yə-ˌlāt How to pronounce manipulate (audio)
manipulated; manipulating
1
: to treat or operate with the hands or by mechanical means especially in a skillful manner
manipulate the fragments of a broken bone into correct position
2
a
: to manage or utilize skillfully
b
: to control or play upon by artful, unfair, or insidious means especially to one's own advantage
manipulative adjective
manipulativeness noun

Legal Definition

manipulate

transitive verb
ma·​nip·​u·​late mə-ˈni-pyə-ˌlāt How to pronounce manipulate (audio)
manipulated; manipulating
: to change by artful or unfair means so as to serve one's purpose
specifically : to affect (the price of securities) artificially in order to deceive or mislead investors
manipulable adjective
manipulation noun
manipulative adjective
manipulatively adverb
manipulativeness noun
manipulator noun
manipulatory adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on manipulate

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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