as in opportunist
one who does things only for his own benefit and with little regard for right and wrong
that bottom-feeder would run over his own mother if it would help him get ahead in his career
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Recent Examples of bottom-feeder
The Warriors already might be too far ahead in the standings to catch bottom-feeders like the New Orleans Pelicans, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers in the race to maximize their draft-lottery odds.
—
Bryan Toporek, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Tomlin wasn’t taking a bottom-feeder job.
—Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
The Mavs dwell among the Western Conference’s bottom-feeders, but no team in either conference presents the sheer volume of storylines as the outfit from Texas’ largest city.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 24 Dec. 2025
For nearly the first two decades of their existence, the New Orleans Saints were NFL bottom-feeders.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025
Chicago is currently mired in a miserable seven-game losing streak, a confounding skid that includes defeats against NBA bottom-feeders like the New Orleans Pelicans, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers, and Brooklyn Nets.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
The Patriots brutalized their opponent in a way the only other AFC team truly competing for the No. 1 seed did not while facing another NFC East bottom-feeder Sunday night.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 3 Dec. 2025
Bryan Toporek, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Tomlin wasn’t taking a bottom-feeder job.
—Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
The Mavs dwell among the Western Conference’s bottom-feeders, but no team in either conference presents the sheer volume of storylines as the outfit from Texas’ largest city.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 24 Dec. 2025
For nearly the first two decades of their existence, the New Orleans Saints were NFL bottom-feeders.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025
Chicago is currently mired in a miserable seven-game losing streak, a confounding skid that includes defeats against NBA bottom-feeders like the New Orleans Pelicans, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers, and Brooklyn Nets.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
The Patriots brutalized their opponent in a way the only other AFC team truly competing for the No. 1 seed did not while facing another NFC East bottom-feeder Sunday night.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 3 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bottom-feeder
Noun
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Thousands of players entered the portal this cycle and the sport’s biggest opportunists (and spenders) were active early.—
Shawn McFarland,
Dallas Morning News,
16 Jan. 2026
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Sérgio Lisboa Machado, a co-author of the paper and a professor at Federal University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, said mosquitoes are opportunists who don't venture far to find food.—
Dr. Crystal Richards,
ABC News,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The Chinese are crazy for shark fins.—
Jonathan Miles,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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The underwater habitat is home to the state fish, the Garibaldi, along with angel sharks, bat rays and other marine life.—
Hannah Fry,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Thus the self-seekers and the doctrinaires were drawn together into an alliance to maintain the status quo, and all its abuses and inequalities were made sacrosanct.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
18 Dec. 2011
Cite this Entry
“Bottom-feeder.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bottom-feeder. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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