as in selecting
to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities
cherry-picked the spacious corner office for his corporate fief
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Recent Examples of cherry-picking
The Justice Department has pushed back on the defense suggestion that Bondi continues to profit from Ballard’s ongoing representation of UnitedHealth Group and accused Mangione’s lawyers of creating such a misimpression by cherry-picking language from her public financial disclosure report.
—
Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026
Vartkessian renders them neither clinically nor sensationally—a fine line to walk—and cherry-picking details for this review feels grossly reductive, like a thumbnail sketch of a scene of desolation.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Following Democrats’ release, Republicans accused Democrats of cherry-picking the emails, later releasing a tranche of 20,000 pages of documents both sides received from the Epstein estate last week.
—Emily Brooks, The Hill, 13 Nov. 2025
More than 85 scientists denounced the report, accusing officials of cherry-picking facts and figures to allow for the administration’s fossil fuel ambitions.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 23 Sep. 2025
Sisters Mackinley and Taylor Hill are taking inspiration from their own lives and cherry-picking a collection of juicy new jewelry for their debut line, Stone Fruit.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
Their style is to highlight 5% out of all the film’s reviews, cherry-picking the ones that that are negative.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026
Vartkessian renders them neither clinically nor sensationally—a fine line to walk—and cherry-picking details for this review feels grossly reductive, like a thumbnail sketch of a scene of desolation.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Following Democrats’ release, Republicans accused Democrats of cherry-picking the emails, later releasing a tranche of 20,000 pages of documents both sides received from the Epstein estate last week.
—Emily Brooks, The Hill, 13 Nov. 2025
More than 85 scientists denounced the report, accusing officials of cherry-picking facts and figures to allow for the administration’s fossil fuel ambitions.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 23 Sep. 2025
Sisters Mackinley and Taylor Hill are taking inspiration from their own lives and cherry-picking a collection of juicy new jewelry for their debut line, Stone Fruit.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
Their style is to highlight 5% out of all the film’s reviews, cherry-picking the ones that that are negative.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cherry-picking
Verb
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For all the speculation about selecting a defensive lineman or running back with the ninth overall pick in the NFL Draft, the Chiefs may find themselves in need of a boost in another area — wide receiver.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
20 Feb. 2026
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Amy Steele dedicated her life to her vocation by choosing to embrace difficult situations instead of selecting the simplest path.—
Maria Williams,
USA Today,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Your strength lies not in not needing anyone, but in consciously choosing with whom to move forward.—
Marie Bladt,
Vogue,
20 Feb. 2026
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If even deciding where to start seems difficult, Bereika suggests choosing the smallest category.—
Quincy Bulin,
Southern Living,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Of course, if money is no object, picking a luxury SUV could be surprisingly challenging.—
Morgan Korn,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
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Use Liquid Herbicide When picking a post-emergent herbicide, Cuoco recommends looking for a liquid form that can be sprayed directly onto problem areas.—
Nishaa Sharma,
The Spruce,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cherry-picking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cherry-picking. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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