opportunistic
adjective
op·por·tu·nis·tic
ˌä-pər-tü-ˈni-stik 
-tyü-
: taking advantage of opportunities as they arise: such as
a
: exploiting opportunities with little regard to principle (see principle sense 1) or consequences
a politician considered opportunistic
an opportunistic investment
b
: feeding on whatever food is available
opportunistic feeders
opportunistic bears
c
: being or caused by a usually harmless microorganism that can become pathogenic when the host's resistance is impaired
opportunistic infections
opportunistic diseases
Examples of opportunistic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Understanding Raccoon Behavior Raccoons are opportunistic feeders, chowing down on whatever’s readily available.
—
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 18 Oct. 2025
Milwaukee does the little things, and is opportunistic and fundamentally sound.
—Jim Alexander, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
The film follows Caiden (Smith), a hapless fitness enthusiast who moves to Los Angeles dreaming of becoming a trainer, only to be diverted by Randy (Krumholtz), an opportunistic Hollywood Boulevard grifter who exploits his likeness to the world’s most famous superhero.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Because many of these campaigns are driven by volume, little effort is made to distinguish credible claims from opportunistic ones.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
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Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 18 Oct. 2025
Milwaukee does the little things, and is opportunistic and fundamentally sound.
—Jim Alexander, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
The film follows Caiden (Smith), a hapless fitness enthusiast who moves to Los Angeles dreaming of becoming a trainer, only to be diverted by Randy (Krumholtz), an opportunistic Hollywood Boulevard grifter who exploits his likeness to the world’s most famous superhero.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Because many of these campaigns are driven by volume, little effort is made to distinguish credible claims from opportunistic ones.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
Cite this Entry
“Opportunistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opportunistic. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
opportunistic
noun
op·por·tu·nis·tic
-t(y)ü-ˈnis-tik
: taking advantage of opportunities as they arise: as
a
: exploiting opportunities with little regard to principle or consequences
an opportunistic cheater
b
: feeding on whatever food is available
opportunistic feeders
Medical Definition
opportunistic
adjective
op·por·tu·nist·ic
-t(y)ü-ˈnis-tik
1
: of, relating to, or being a microorganism that is usually harmless but can become pathogenic when the host's resistance to disease is impaired
2
: of, relating to, or being an infection or disease caused by an opportunistic organism
Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and other opportunistic infections that kill AIDS patients—New York Times
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