cat's-paw

as in pawn
one that is or can be used to further the purposes of another these changes to the zoning laws have only confirmed for many that the town council has become the cat's-paw of local real estate developers

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cat's-paw
Noun
  • Ellen is a smart, strategic thinker frustrated by her brothers’ desire to use her as a pawn in clan politics.
    Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 9 Aug. 2025
  • Unfortunately, all these mind games and chess moves mean pawns are caught in the middle.
    Rafael Motamayor, Vulture, 9 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • From building a beauty empire to navigating purpose through pain, Monique shares the lessons, leaps of faith, and leadership tools that have shaped her journey.
    Essence, Essence, 13 Aug. 2025
  • Secondly, there are many types of tools, including ad fraud detection, bot detection and ad verification solutions.
    Roman Vrublivskyi, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Cat's-paw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cat%27s-paw. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.

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